The Joy of Liking the Iroquois

I have a deep respect for the Native American peoples and cultures. That came more from seeing and reading about their historical treatment (which I always knew was shameful), and the other extreme where a few casinos fund tribal activities now. I've also had a deep respect for Quetzalcoatl, a Mesoamerican deity, whom I discovered in 1972 when I first learned of him as a Baha'i. Among other positions, he was also the patron god of the Aztec priesthood and of learning and knowledge. To the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl was, as his Aztec name indicates, a feathered serpent, a flying reptile (much like a dragon), who was a boundary-maker . . . between earth and sky. He was a creator deity having contributed essentially to the creation of Mankind. (Source: Wikipedia) He was the earliest manifestation of God in the Americas that I had heard of up until that time, and I bought a book describing him and the Aztec culture which I studied avidly, now since lost.

His relationship to the Iroquoian-speaking peoples, a group of tribes later combined as the Iroquois League, may seem oblique.  Until you read about Daganawida and Hiawatha. We all know of Hiawatha, from the Song of Hiawatha epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow written in 1855. Many of us will also remember the opening words and tune "By the shores of the Gitche Gumee . . . ." Longfellow's Hiawatha was fictional and not associated with the historical figure of the same name who lived c. 1570 - 1600+(?).

"Although Hiawatha is largely described as an Iroquois legend, it is the general consensus that he was indeed a real person who did have a hand in the formation of the Five Nations in what is now present day New York state.  The Five Nations joined as five tribes (later six) of the region to halt inter-tribal feuding that had gone on for over a hundred years." (Source: Native Net) According to legend, Hiawatha was influenced by, and partnered with, Daganawida, The Great Peacemaker. He is associated with the founding of the Iroquois Confederacy; to my mind, the first formal "interdependence" of independent tribes, states if you will, within the pre-and post-revolutionary War of Independence, here in America. I could definitely be wrong about that, but it still serves as an excellent example of early political unity. At one time the League/Confederacy was over 80,000 strong, and fought along-side the British.

Daganawida has an even more fascinating history, "[B]y some accounts, his mother was a virgin, so the birth was miraculous . . . . By all accounts, he was a prophet who counseled peace among the warring tribes, and he called for an end to cannibalism. His follower Hiawatha, a Mohawk(?) renowned for his oratory, helped him achieve his vision." (Source: Wikipedia)

I write this because it all came back to me through the 1980's program called Indian Guides (and Princess), founded within the YMCA decades earlier. When my seven year-old son Jesse and I joined in September 1984, I had been merely impressed with the father-son aspect, but the Native American motif really drew me in. During our three years in the program, and then three more with my daughter Kate, we learned more about Native Americans than we had ever known. And that little bit of knowledge garnered much respect on our parts. Yes, it wasn't always authentic depictions, just generalities,  sometimes over-simplified, and condescending in some ways. But that's not how Jesse and I took it. We took it seriously, although being in Indian Guides was the most fun we had together during his growing up years. It was much the same with Kate, only more social with five giggling girls coming together with their dads for monthly meetings.

When I went to my first orientation meeting at the Hamilton Y, I volunteered to start a tribe. So I held an open house, and a handful of dad's came to hear about it. From that I was nominated chief, and we adopted "Iroquois" as our name, even though I would later find out, as described above, that "Iroquois" was the name of a people, not a tribe. But we continued on happily in blissful ignorance. Jesse and I fully participated in, and actively nurtured our tribe, one of a dozen in the local program. By the second year I was helping other chiefs form their tribes. Jesse and I would go to their open house in our full regalia: leather vests (mine said Sunblaze and Jesses's Sunshine), leather wrist bands, bead necklaces, and Indian Guides headbands with eagle feathers.

We would gather in a circle sitting on our haunches, and open with the prayer to the Great Spirit. I would hold the talking stick and explain the simple program elements, then pass it to Jesse and he would say, "And Winter Weekend is just too much fun to miss!' Winter Weekend was just that, Saturday and Sunday spent in cabins at YMCA Camp Mason in Hope NJ, near the Delaware water gap, among all the tribes of the nation. There's was always at least a foot of snow covering the woods, trails, and hidden paths, streams and ponds, and we held a bonfire and sang camp songs the last night. There was a great hill for sledding, and a canteen where we gathered for meals and skits - during which each tribe told a short Indian story. We loved the program, and Kate and I later enjoyed it just as much.

I was deeply disappointed a few years ago upon hearing the Indian Guides Program had been cancelled, and a new one, with all references to Native Americans removed, had replaced it. It seems it was no longer "PC" -- politically correct. It's now called YMCA Adventure Guides. Not the same thing at all, since there is no theme that I can determine. However, the basic premise, father-son or father-daughter bonding (or even mother-son, mother-daughter), is still intact, and that's a good thing. We need more programs like that, along with the many CYO youth programs, for example. In the Baha'i Faith we have similar, but not as organized, Junior Youth programs. The point is, all of us have a responsibility to our children and youth to help them socialize, accumulate new knowledge, as well as be tolerant and accepting of others. Diversity is the name of the game today. The best part about Indian Guides? It wasn't a mere babysitting exercise, it was full, engaging and active participation.

One more point about this story of the Iroquois. When they were separate, independent tribes, they had  warred and killed each other for the past hundred years, as stated. They were "rugged individuals." But in unity they found peace, collaboration, and development. America wasn't founded on rugged individualism, although that of course is a part of our unique history. America was founded on unity of the disparate colonies thru thoughts, freedoms, laws, and political unity.

Our forefathers surely knew and saw and heard of the Iroquois Confederacy and their great strengths. That is the foundation of America.

By Rodney Richards, NJ