7th Haudenosaunee Conference

PROTECTING AND PRESERVING OUR TREATIES:
POLISHING THE SILVER COVENANT CHAIN IN THE 21ST CENTURY

November 6, 2010
Goldstein Student Center

401 Skytop Road, South Campus
Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY  13210

8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Welcoming Remarks - Robert Odawi Porter

Video 1: Ernie Benedict

Video 2: Robert Odawi Porter

Video 3: Laurence Hauptman

Video 4: Carrie E. Garrow

Video 5: Joe Heath

Video 6: All Panelists

Closing Remarks - Robert Odawi Porter

 Registration: mail-in, pdf file

Registration: online

Agenda

Accommodations

Directions

Conference abstract
The Haudenosaunee Nations repeatedly entered into treaties with European Nations and subsequently the United States until 1871 when the U.S. declared it would no longer engage in treaty making with Indian Nations. For the Haudenosaunee, treaties are not simply documents or pieces of paper, rather they are living relationships acknowledging our sovereignty that must be protected, preserved, and affirmed. The foundation for many Haudenosaunee treaties is the Two Row Wampum and the Silver Covenant Chain of Friendship, delineating that as separate nations we can come to agreement to live side by side as friends while maintaining and governing our own separate nations without interference. And from time to time rust might appear upon the chain of friendship, requiring the sovereigns to come together and polish the chain, renewing their treaty relationship and commitment to peace and friendship. This renewal allows the sovereigns to reaffirm treaty terms and address growing problems that may damage their relationship or break the treaty. Today, our nations and leaders have a responsibility to continue to polish this chain and protect, preserve, and affirm our treaties as they are critical components of our nationhood. Moreover, we have a responsibility to teach our next generations how to polish the chain and protect our treaties for the next seven generations.

The 7th Annual Haudenosaunee Conference is an opportunity for Haudenosaunee citizens, leaders and scholars to gather and discuss the philosophy of treaty making and how to preserve and protect our treaty rights in the 21st century. Speakers will address how this philosophy is being exercised in the 21st century. Speakers will also address efforts to exercise, preserve, and protect specific treaties such as the Treaty of Canandaigua and the Jay Treaty, as well as methods to polish our treaty relationship with New York, U.S., and Canadian governments.