Some say Jamestown VA is the birthplace of American democracy; others say it’s Philadelphia PA. But in truth, it isn’t either of those places — the Native Americans formed a fully functioning democracy in the area of NY centuries before a single colonist arrived.
Their government influenced our government.
So said the US Congress in a concurrent resolution in 1988:
“. . . the confederation of the original Thirteen Colonies into one republic was influenced by the political system developed by the Iroquois Confederacy as were many of the democratic principles which were incorporated into the Constitution itself . . . . “
The Great Law of Peace is the constitution of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederacy — Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca; it’s part narrative and part legislative.
(Much later a sixth nation, Tuscarora, was added.)
Narrative
The Peacemaker Delivers the Good Message
In the 1100s, the five nations were in a perpetual state of war with each other. They were trapped in dark cycles of mindless bloodshed, and the people had long lived in a state of fear and chaos. But then a prophet arrived and announced the Peace was coming.
They call this prophet the Peacemaker.
For many years, the Peacemaker journeyed throughout the nations delivering a three-part message: the Good Message, the Power, and the Peace. First, he said, the people would stop killing each other and be like relatives instead; then the nations would unite and be as one powerful family; and once all the people considered themselves related, they would be able to live and travel throughout their lands in peace.
While many of the people and tribes accepted the Peacemaker’s message easily, others required more effort. Some had become addicted to warfare, or had their minds twisted by such a long time of fear and killing.
In those cases, the Peacemaker relied on the power of the Good Mind — the rational mind.
All people, he said, are capable of thinking rationally, and when they do, they naturally make good decisions that lead to peace and harmony. Right thinking leads to right decisions.
Using a variety of tactics, the Peacemaker healed the minds of those who were behaving irrationally and blocking the path to peace — a cannibal who was hunting and eating people; a woman who was encouraging the warriors to continue killing; a chief who was ruling by evil and murder; and others. As he helped the people to think right, they agreed to give up their old ways and commit to right living instead.
Once the Peacemaker had restored all the people to the Good Mind and convinced them of the Good Message, the Peace arrived. The people joined together as one powerful family devoted to maintaining peace amongst themselves and with all others they came in contact with.
The Peacemaker then created a democratic government for the new confederacy.
And the people began to call themselves the Haudenosaunee.
The Great Law, the US Constitution, and a National Mission
The constitution the Peacemaker developed shares many similarities with the one our founding fathers later wrote. Under the Great Law:
- Each nation maintains their own sovereignty and joins together in a Grand Council, like Congress, to make decisions for the confederacy. They each appoint an equal number of chiefs to represent them in council meetings.
- The chiefs of the five nations are divided into three separate groups — two to debate and decide issues, like Congress; and one to step in once an issue is decided, or when the other two can’t agree, like the President and Vice President.
- The women have a separate Women’s Council which serves a role similar to the Supreme Court.
- Extensive checks and balances ensure no one nation or group has too much power.
- The people explicitly maintain their already significant freedoms of speech, religion, and assembly.
- Confederacy symbols include the eagle, because it is free and far-seeing; and a bundle of five arrows, to represent the power of unity. The colonies later chose both the eagle and a bundle of 13 arrows, which made it onto the dollar bill.
When he finished the Great Law of Peace, the Peacemaker gave the Haudenosaunee a new national mission:
“The law is now as young as the day when the sun is rising and lights the earth; just as it causes warmth all over the earth for all the people, we will help the people of every nation . . . This is what you will work at: everyone shall become related to one another, so that it will become a single family, consisting of every people on earth; and this is what will unite them, the Good Message and the Power and the Peace.” – the Peacemaker
Scholars debate the exact amount of influence the Great Law had on our US Constitution; some say a little, and others say it’s a less evolved copy. I’m not a constitutional scholar, but I know an inspiring government when I about read one.
The Haudenosaunee democracy is disciplined, thoughtful, respectful, and devoted to the higher cause of maintaining unity and peace amongst all people, and with all of nature.
We know the founding fathers — notably, Washington, Franklin, and Jefferson — spent time with the Haudenosaunee and attended their council meetings. They also invited the Haudenosaunee chiefs to speak at their meetings, including the Continental Congress in 1776.
In keeping with their mission, the chiefs encouraged the 13 colonies to unite in friendship as one people, in one powerful and free nation, just as they had.
I find it hard to believe anyone could experience the Haudenosaunee government and the people’s inherent sense of personal liberty in real life and not be affected in a significant way.
Legislative
Here are some of the legislative aspects that stood out for me. If only our founding fathers had included a few of these ideas in our constitution, too:
(All quotes are from Kayanerenko:Wa: The Great Law of Peace, by Kayanesenh Paul Williams.)
Equality for women
Even in the 1100s, Haudenosaunee women were seen as equal to the men. Each had their specific responsibilities in the society, but gender roles were balanced and that was carried forward in the new government.
Women choose the chiefs. Even before the Peacemaker arrived, the Haudenosaunee lived by a clan system. Each clan had a woman leader, a clan mother. Under the Great Law, the chiefs are always male, but the clan mothers choose the chiefs. They also have the power to remove a chief who isn’t doing his duty.
Women can veto war. As the ones most directly responsible for the children, the women also had the right to say no to any action that would unnecessarily endanger them.
Women own the land. The Haudenosaunee didn’t ever “own” land, but the women had authority over it. They were the ones who tended the fields and gathered the plants, so they made the decisions. This was the case before the Peacemaker, and it’s written into the Great Law.
In 1791, the Haudenosaunee women met with a US representative and told him this:
“You ought to hear and listen to what we women speak, as well as to the [chiefs], for we are the owners of this land—and it is ours; for it is we that plant it, for our and their use. Hear us, therefore, for we speak of things that concern us and our children, and you must not think hard of us, while our men shall say more to you; for we have told them.”
Respect for nature
Every council begins with a full reading of the Thanksgiving Address; an offering of thanks to the Earth and all of nature. One person speaks it, and all the chiefs join in on “Now our minds are one.” It often takes 30 minutes.
The intention is to put the chiefs in a harmonious state of mind and remind them that their decisions affect a grand web of life of which humans are only one part.
Here’s an excerpt:
We are thankful to our Mother the Earth, for she gives us everything that we need for life. She supports our feet as we walk about upon her. It gives us joy that she still continues to care for us, just as she has from the beginning of time. To our Mother, we send thanksgiving, love, and respect. Now our minds are one.
We gather our minds together to send our greetings and thanks to all the beautiful animal life of the world, who walk about with us. They have many things to teach us as people. We are grateful that they continue to share their lives with us and hope that it will always be so. Let us put our minds together as one and send our thanks to the Animals. Now our minds are one.
You can read more here: Invoking Gratitude the Haudenosaunee Way.
Chiefs as mentors of the people
The chiefs of the confederacy are known as men of wisdom and generosity who lead by example rather than executive authority.
Their position gives them the responsibility to care for the well-being of all the Haudenosaunee. They are expected to be good and honest, and in the early days, would consider it an honor to give all of their belongings away to the people.
“Their hearts shall be full of peace and good will and their minds filled with a yearning for the welfare of the people of the Confederacy. With endless patience they shall carry out their duty and their firmness shall be tempered with a tenderness for their people. Neither anger nor fury shall find lodgement in their minds and all their words and actions shall be marked with calm deliberation.” – The Peacemaker
The Good Mind
The Great Law includes numerous provisions for making sure the chiefs are rational and focused while debating issues. Because when people are in a state of mental and physical health, they are less likely to become angry and confrontational.
The Great Law is deliberately designed for agreement and harmony.
Provisions include:
- The council ends at dark, so no decisions are made when people are tired.
- The council room is to be kept free of dust and dirt.
- The council fire should not be made with chestnut wood, because it crackles and is distracting.
- The council is to only focus on one issue at a time. If the chiefs start discussing an issue before the current one is completed, there is a person designated to bring them back on track.
The idea is that when people are in a good state of mind, they will make good decisions that lead to peace.
Decision making for seven generations
The Great Law is the source of the Native American practice of planning for future generations.
The Peacemaker instructed the chiefs to take the long view and think of protecting the coming seven generations when making any decisions. They were to always be mindful that their choices would affect the lives of people far into the future.
In the 1970s, the Haudenosaunee delivered this opening message at the United Nations:
“For centuries we have known that each individual’s action creates conditions and situations that affect the world. For centuries we have been careful to avoid any action unless it carried a long-range prospect of promoting harmony and peace in the world. In that context, with our brothers and sisters of the Western Hemisphere, we have journeyed here to discuss these important matters with the Family of Man.”
The Haudenosaunee still govern themselves by a version of the Great Law of Peace today.
Sources:
Kayanerenko:Wa: The Great Law of Peace, by Kayanesenh Paul Williams
Concurrent Resolution, 100th US Congress
“Haudenosaunee Guide for Educators,” National Museum of the American Indian
Trees Are Individual Beings