Transcript Style D 36 by 54 - Gettysburg College

Suzy Englot, Gettysburg College
Anth 223: “Indigenous People,
The Environment, and the Economy”
For the Love of the Game:
The Struggle of the Haudenosaunee For
Recognized Autonomy
Credit to The Wampum Chronicles for this picture
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Background
This section cites material exclusively from Timeline of the Onondaga Nation-People of the
Hills, Encyclopedia of the Haudenosaunee, A Brief History of Haudenosaunee-US
Relations, and The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and also draws from personal
experience (I live in Syracuse, NY).
The Haudenosaunee (Ho-deh-no-shaw-nee), a phrase meaning “people of the
longhouse”, are a group of six Native American tribes in the Northeastern United States, mostly
residing in New York and Canada. Also known as the Six Nations Confederacy, the original five
tribes formed this union around 1142, before the creation of either the US or Canada. The
nations who are a part of it are the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and
Tuscarora. The Tuscarora were formally added to the confederacy in the 1700s when they
migrated to New York from the area now known as North Carolina.
The Haudenosaunee have a matrilineal society, and tribes are divided by families, each
with a different animal name. Traditionally, they live off the land and believe in giving thanks for
everything nature provides for us. Now, in a more modern world, some have adapted to the
times and the technology and Western lifestyle. But some do stick to traditional ways, or at least
live in the spirit of tradition. Children are still taught ancestral songs and dances, and learn the
story of their people.
There is an immense amount of pride about their nation as a separate entity from the
US or Canada. Besides their aboriginal right to reside in the area, there are numerous treaties
dating back to when Europeans were first settling that prove that for centuries, the
Haudenosaunee have been recognized as their own autonomous nation with territory that
belongs to only them. As Europeans explored, they would make treaties with the
Haudenosaunee to ease their journeys and promote good relations, which could lead to survival
due to the natives’ expertise about where food and water was located. The French referred to
them as the Iroquois, a name that has stuck throughout the years, though they prefer the name
created from their own language.
In the Treaty of Utrecht, which in 1713 stopped a war between the French and the
English, they recognized and respected the Haudenosaunee’s aboriginal right to move freely
and engage in trade throughout their territories. Other important treaties signed were the Fort
Stanwix treaties, setting the boundaries for both the US and Haudenosaunee nations, and the
Trade and Intercouse Act, proclaiming that no legal transactions could take place on their land
without a present Federal agent and the approval of Congress, to prevent any shady deals.
These legal documents should have protected them from any sort of incident. As Oren
Lyons, the current faithkeeper of the Onondaga Nation, said, “These treaties are clear evidence
that we are a separate sovereign and that our people are citizens of the Haudenosaunee”
(Lyons, p.5). However, this would not always be recognized and respected.
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Connection to Lacrosse
It is widely accepted that the Iroquois, and more specifically, the Mohawk Nation,
were instrumental in the creation of the sport of lacrosse. While Canadians are credited with
creating the modern form of lacrosse, they got the idea for the game from natives. To get the
final product, “they adopted and then adapted the Mohawk ball game tewaarathon” (Fisher,
10). In 1980, the Haudenosaunee finally created their own national men’s lacrosse team,
called the Iroquois Nationals (History Timeline, 2009). Their colors are purple, white, and
yellow, and they travel worldwide to compete with all the best teams.
Threats They Face
The greatest threat to the Haudenosaunee has always been the
lack of recognition of their sovereignty. This has led to many setbacks,
including a period of time when the state of New York tried (and in many
cases, succeeded in) taking their land away from them through
underhanded deals. They lost massive amounts of territory, and as recently
as 2005 have been appealing decisions with land claims (History-Timeline,
2009). Locals who now live on the disputed land voice concerns that they
would have to move, but the Haudenosaunee acknowledge now that all they
want from the government at this point is admission that what they did was
morally wrong and illegal.
Another setback that has recently resurfaced in the public eye
internationally is that of the the Iroquois Nationals being denied entry to
England for the World Lacrosse Championships in the summer of 2010
because the British government decided that the Haudenosaunee passports
the men and their coaches carried were not sufficient forms of identification
for entering the country (BBC News, 2010). They argued that because the
documents are partially handwritten and do not contain the chips or
holographic detailing that make US passports so secure, it is a safety
hazard (Kaplan, 2010). The US also waited until the last minute to agree
that they would let the team back into the country with those passports, but
they eventually said it was permissible this time. New York State
Department spokesperson PJ Crowley said later that
“we’ve done what we can do…It would appear to us at
this point that the U.K. has made their final determination”
(Kaplan, 2010).
This is the first time in decades that this has been
an issue for the Haudenosaunee. Their first use of these
passports dates back to 1977, when they were used by
Onondaga delegates to travel to Switzerland (HistoryTimeline, 2009).. They are recognized in the US and
Canada and seen as no problem, and Haudenosaunee
have traveled to places like Japan and Australia without
any issues. The fact that the Nationals were ranked
Credit to Tuscarora
fourth in the world coming into the tournament makes the
Environment
matter all the more interesting.
Conceptual Question:
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Is a nation truly autonomous and sovereign if others do
not recognize it to be?
In the example of the Haudenosaunee, we can see that while a
sovereign nation can proclaim itself to be so by showing proof of treaties
that define boundaries and trade agreements, and have a unique set of
languages and culture, and even have its own personal documentation
system, there is still another element to being a nation: a majority of
countries, especially those closest to you, must recognize you as such.
Without the validation of bordering countries, a nation looks less legitimate
in the eyes of the world, and incidents may occur that test and seem to
break their concept of autonomy.
Credit to Jessica Crabtree
Credit to Jan Jekielek
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In the News
This issue was very widely publicized on
both sides of the Atlantic ocean, and most
Credit to Tracy Thomas
people agreed that justice was not served.
However, because of the great amount of international attention that this
matter received, the Haudenosaunee felt that they had achieved
something greater than performance on the lacrosse field. Said Marty
Ward, the goalie of the Nationals,
“We fought a battle that was bigger than lacrosse.
It brought indigenous people back to the forefront.
It let everyone know that we’re still here—we
haven’t gone anywhere.”
-Marty Ward, goalie for the Iroquois Nationals
Recently the Iroquois Nationals receive good news from the Czech
Republic, the site of this summer’s indoor lacrosse world championships, in
that they will be allowed into the country with their Haudenosaunee
passports in a one-time-only deal similar to the one the US agreed on last
summer (David, 2011). The US has yet to confirm that it will allow them back
into the country with those passports.
For More Information on the Haudenosaunee, go to
www.haudenosauneeconfederacy.ca. For Updates on the men’s lacrosse team or to
purchase gear (the money goes toward funding future trips), visit
www.iroquoisnationals.org.
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Works Cited:
1999
2009
A Brief History of Haudenosaunee-U.S. Relations. Syracuse Peace Council-Land Claim News, Fall.
History-Timeline. Onondaga Nation - People of the Hills. Electronic document.
http://www.onondaganation.org/aboutus/timeline.html, accessed April 30, 2011.
2010
Haudenosaunee Documentation Committee (HDC). Tuscarora Environment. Picture.
http://tuscaroraenvironment.com/oldposts.aspx, accessed April 30, 2011
2010
UK refuses to grant visas to Iroquois lacrosse team. BBC News Online. Electronic document.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us+canada-10634044, accessed May 1, 2011.
Bonaparte, Darren
2009
The Wampum Chronicles. Picture. http://www.wampumchronicles.com/, accessed May 1, 2011.
Crabtree, Jessica
2010
Iroquois Nationals-Making lemons into lemonade. Picture.
http://www.jessicacrabtree.com/journal1/2010/11/iroquois-nationals-making-lemons-into-lemonade, accessed May
1, 2011
David, Frank
2011
Czech authorities will allow Iroquois to participate in WILC in Prague. Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse. Electronic
document. http://iroquoisnationals.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=138:czech-authorities-willallow-iroquois-to-participate-at-wilc-in-prague&catid=34:iroquois-nationals-program, accessed April 30, 2011.
Fisher, Donald M.
2002
Lacrosse: A History of the Game. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Jekielek, Jan.
2010
Iroquois Nationals Team Misses First Day of World Lacrosse Championships. The Epoch Times. Picture.
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/39249/, accessed April 30, 2011.
Johansen, Bruce Elliott and Barbara Alice Mann
2000
Encyclopedia of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy). Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group.
Kaplan, Thomas
2010
Iroquois Defeated by Passport Dispute. New York Times, July 16.
Lyons, Oren
2010
The Haudenosaunee Confederacy: Sovereignty, Citizenship and Passports. Onondaga Nation-People of the Hills.
Electronic document. http://www.onondaganation.org/news/2010/2010_0711.html, accessed May 1, 2011.
Thomas, Tracy
2010
Reflections of Injustice: Haudenosaunee Lacrosse. Censored News. Picture.
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2010/09/reflections-of-injustice-haudenosaunee.html, accessed May 1, 2011.
Special Thanks to
Professor Donna Perry
and the Gettysburg College
Anthropology Department