Comparing The Political And Political Structure Of The Iroquois Confederacy

In the Iroquois Confederacy, politics were run through a Council. Richard Blanchard notes that the Council was in charge of the external affairs of the Confederacy and matters that were common to all of the tribes, but could not regulate the internal affairs of each tribe (9). The political structure of the Iroquois is very similar to that of the US Congress, with a two-house legislature. The representatives from each tribe were called sachems, and though the sachems were men, powerful women in the tribe chose the men to represent their tribe (Blanchard 10). The sachems from the Oneida and the Cayuga tribes met in one house, and the sachems from the Seneca and Mohawk met in another. The sachems from the Onondaga tribe broke ties, and were also

The Iroquois would show symbols of their culture in their work, such as the turtle, bear, hawk, beaver, and Grandmother Moon, Elder Brother Sun, etc. Popular forms of everyday art for the Iroquois were faceless dolls, pottery, paintings, stone carvings, woodwork, and baskets made of cornhusk (Barnes 67). Barnes also states that “The kachina dolls and religious leaders provided a social cement” (67); therefore, not only did the Iroquois see art as a way of showing respect to their ancestors, but they also considered it a “cement” that was steadfast and crucial in their everyday lives. A very common art form that the Iroquois would trade were wampum belts, which were multi-color designed belts handmade with wampum beads. As the Iroquois started to globalize and trade more with the nonnative people, they introduced the wampum beads and belts to them, so much to the point that wampum beads actually became a form of currency. This was positive for the Iroquois because it symbolized that they were starting to be accepted and recognized as a federation, both socially and economically. This was also negative because as they started to globalize more, they started to become acquainted with different aspects of the different cultures around them, and would eventually lose some parts of their Iroquois culture, such as their

From the founding of the Confederacy in 1459 until today, the Iroquois has stayed true to a lot of their traditions and beliefs, and continue to be proud of their culture. However, as the Iroquois starting globalizing with the world outside of their Confederacy, they have been introduced to concepts that have been implemented into their everyday lives, and have seen both positive and negative consequences that have arisen. Positively, because of globalization, the Iroquois have been able to gain access in free trade with other groups outside their Confederacy, which was a huge impact on their economic structure. They were also able to gain status and recognition as an independent federation to countries such as the United States, England, and France, and were also able to still create private Indian reservations for themselves. There are, however, some negative effects of the Iroquois’ globalization, such as the losing of parts of their roots. Many Iroquois have changed religions because of the information they acquired as a side effect of globalization, and they have found loyalty to religions different from their original. The Iroquois also became weakened after the American Revolution, and was divided into Canadian and New York branches (Graymont 78). Graymont continues, “its members were pushed apart by conflicting interests and by their respective relations with either US or British officials,” and