Members, allies of Mohawk Nation protest land settlement talks in downtown Syracuse

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Over 100 protesters wearing traditional Kanienkehaka clothing and white t-shirts reading “relevant decision maker” gathered outside of the James M. Hanley Federal Building and Courthouse for a protest Monday morning.

The text on the t-shirts expressed members of the Mohawk Nation’s concerns that traditional tribal members have a lack of input in settlement talks regarding a 1982 lawsuit. The lawsuit challenged the legitimacy of the 1796 Treaty With The Seven Nations, which attempted to remove “inherent ownership” of more than nine million acres of Mohawk land, including the Adirondacks, the Catskills and the Mohawk Valley, Kahente Horn-Miller, a member of the Kanienkehaka community of Kahnawake, wrote in a statement sent to The Daily Orange Monday morning.

The lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court in Syracuse, alleges that New York state entered six treaties with individuals that claimed to represent the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe between 1810 and 1845. These contracts granted the state ownership of Mohawk land in Franklin and St. Lawrence counties without the consent of the U.S. Congress or the people of the Mohawk Nation.

During the Monday protest, the court met with the “Tricouncil of Akwesasne” to discuss the settlement. Members of the Kanienkehaka, or Mohawk, claim the council does not represent their people because its legitimacy comes from outside of the Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy, according to the statement.

The 1796 treaty cannot be used as a foundation for the legitimacy of the settlement, as it was signed by individuals who did not have proper authority, according to the statement. The statement questions Louis Cook’s authority to negotiate and sign the treaty due to his “newcomer” status. Horn-Miller wrote that he would never have been given the responsibility to negotiate.

“Despite trying to make it known through traditional and legal processes that the Tricouncil does not have the authority to sign our land, we’ve been ignored,” said Ojistoh Horn, a speaker and Mohawk physician. “Most of our people have been deliberately excluded from the discussions going on right now. Whatever decision or deal is made to the United States government and the state of New York or any other entity at the Tricouncil is invalid.”

Protesters held signs with phrases including “New York State land stealers” and “Howard Thompson does not decide for us.”

Thompson, a council representative from Mohawk Nation’s Council of Chiefs, is the only chief permitted to be part of the negotiations, said Marina Johnson-Zafiris, a second-year doctoral student at Cornell University and a member of the Mohawk Wolf Clan. Thompson is the only condoled chief of the Mohawk Nation that is presently supportive of the settlement, she said.

A number of Mohawk people have significant concerns regarding issues such as the use and occupancy deed provisions of the internal agreement, the good faith clause, the clearing clouds of title within the New York State and New York Power Authority Memorandum of Understanding, but their concerns are not being heard, Johnson-Zafiris said.

Many said they can’t put these “numerous outstanding issues” held by the Council of Chiefs or condoled leadership in front of the judge or withdraw from the court system because they are being “blocked” by the legal counsel, Johnson-Zafiris said.

“We are making this decision to gather to state that even though we’re not in attendance in the court, we are still relevant decision-makers in this present-day settlement negotiation,” Johnson-Zafiris said.

A federal mediator who spoke during the protest said that the parties were not signing an agreement, but trying to “finalize” the agreement and no decision was being made. In reference to the peaceful gathering, the mediator said the protestors had an “opportunity to express (their feelings)” at the “appropriate time.”

The mediator’s words were met with vocal opposition from the crowd, with people insinuating that he was “talking down” to them rather than mediating.

Several speakers at the protest emphasized the power of the Haudenosaunee Clan Mother, who is the leader of her clan and the nation.

One speaker, Kanietakeron, whose father was a condoled chief and his mother a Clan Mother, said that the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs, who want to keep the deal with New York state, do not represent the nation.

“I can’t emphasize enough. We are international law,” Kanietakeron said. “The Clan Mothers are the first law of the land … they have to listen to the Clan Mothers, and the Clan Mothers say no.”

Kanietakeron and other attendees gathered to correct and bring attention to the “wrongdoings” of the council, as they violated international law because they went above and beyond the people without their consent, he said.

After an hour of protesting, a few protesters were allowed to enter the building and speak in the hearing, Kanietakeron said. Originally, no protesters were allowed to attend.

After the speakers concluded, the crowd joined together to participate in the “Friendship Dance,” which is universal to Native American Nations of Turtle Island.

“Everything we do is in circles because it renews itself and comes back and regenerates,” said Michelle George, a United Nations representative for the United Tribal Nations.

Crowd members and the speakers join together for the “Friendship Dance,” a tradition throughout Native American Nations of Turtle Island.

Cassandra Roshu | Photo Editor

Indigenous people have lost “nearly 99% of the land they historically occupied” since about 300 years ago, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Throughout the 19th century, European settlers removed Indigenous people from their land by forcibly removing and massacring them. The 19th-century “Doctrine of Discovery” stated that European colonial powers had the right to any land not inhabited by Christians and justified colonists’ seizure of land from Indigenous peoples worldwide.

Ever since, Indigenous people across the U.S. have made efforts to reclaim the land. The Onondaga Nation, like many other Indigenous peoples, continues to work to get land back from the state.

In 2022, the Onondaga Nation announced a land return victory of more than 1,000 acres of forest lands in the Tully Valley. However, the Onondaga Nation wasn’t included in talks about the terms of the land transfer until its conditions were already set, and the transfer has yet to be realized as of Feb. 2023.

George, a member of the Onondaga Nation, emphasized that their laws are superior and that the courts no longer have jurisdiction over the Indigenous people.

“None of these courts can have anything to do with us,” George said. “We’ve got our full sovereignty back and we have to hold on to it and give it to our children.”

George said the nation will not sell its land but rather lease it to ensure that future generations will be “set for life.”

“They shouldn’t have to live life the way we have. Each generation has changed things through life, and it’s getting there slowly but surely, but it’s been over 500 years that we’ve been oppressed,” George said. “We’ve been quiet and peaceful and now we can stand up for what we believe in and our people.”

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated that Johnson said the Haudenosaunee have significant concerns regarding issues of the agreement. This was incorrect. Johnson does not speak for the Haudenosaunee collectively.