'Sharp words' from historians miss the point of Two Row Wampum commemoration

[IndigeNews]

'Sharp words' from historians miss the point of Two Row Wampum
commemoration: Your letters
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Your Letters By Your Letters
on August 16, 2013 at 7:15 AM, updated August 16, 2013 at 7:17 AM
To the Editor:

Regarding the Two Row Wampum treaty: I read your coverage with much
interest, as we were hoping to engage historians more on this issue. I
spoke in July at the Troy festival on the Two Row and I made the point
that the actual treaty with the Dutch and the making of the Two Row
wampum occurred later. However, the first real contact we had with
Dutch traders in the region of Albany took place in 1613, thus the
commemoration.

Historians, anthropologists and ethnohistorians have well-documented
the cultural protocols of engagement when the Haudenosaunee meet
visitors to our communities. We can reasonably assume that when the
Mohawks met the Dutch traders in 1613, they had to come to one mind on
a few matters. Whatever they agreed to (as our oral history and wampum
belt tell us) they shook hands and sealed an agreement. This agreement
was not a formal treaty as we understand it today, but in our language
it represents a "completed matter," the same word we apply to a treaty.
We agreed that there would be trade between us, that we would use
peaceful negotiations, not violence, to settle and disputes and we
would provide assistance to each other as needed.

Just as historians has shown that there were numerous "treaty councils"
in the past, the agreements that were made at these councils were part
of a treaty relationship, not always codified in a formal document. In
1613 our peaceful relation began with the Dutch. It did not always hold
true, but the principles allowed us to restore peace after any
conflict.

Therefore we believe that the origin of the Two Row Wampum began in
1613 when the Dutch traders arrived in the Albany area and met with
some Mohawk traders, who had a tradition of visiting this same region
for the same of trade for many years prior to the arrival of the Dutch.

More importantly, the agreement to co-exist in peace and friendship is
something that we should all celebrate. Perhaps a few historians also
need be reminded that peaceful intent is better than sharp words.

Rick Hill
Deyohahage Indigenous Knowledge Centre
Six Nations Polytechnic
Ohswekem, Ontario

http://blog.syracuse.com/opinion/2013/08/
sharp_words_from_historians_mi.html
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For more about the commemoration see
Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign
http://honorthetworow.org/