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Similarities Between Us Constitution And Iroquois Constitution

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The Iroquois Constitution and the Constitution of the United States, written in 1787, have influenced the society Americans live in today. Many people do not associate the United States Constitution with the Iroquois Constitution (visa versa) because a large multitude of people don’t even know that Iroquois Constitution exists. Both documents have similarities and differences that are based upon human equality, personal rights, and security of self and state. Human equality was a huge deal for the leaders of the Five Nations; every rule was based upon individuals being treated with the utmost respect, as long as they earned it. Equality and fair treatment of the clans, doesn’t just fall to those who are native to the Nations either; those …show more content…

In affiliation to the Iroquois Constitution, a member not holding power, has the ability to make choices for himself and the people. For example, section 93 says that if there is ever an emergency that threatens all the nations and it is brought up to the council by the people, the people now have the chance to make their decision and tell the council what should be done (The Great Binding 93). Marriage is another right that has to be thought out and looked at because of everything involved. Section 43 says that if a man and a woman are of the same exact clan, they can not marry because member of the same clan are displayed as relatives, even if it isn’t by blood (The Great Binding 43). Another right members have is the ability to leave the clan. If a person is adopted into the clan, but later decides that they want to leave, they can; however, if the council calls for them and wants them back, they automatically have to return (The Great Binding 71). Of course there are many more personal rights, but finally, the right to own property and land. The original owners of the land are going to be the same owners until they die and it is moved to the next generation; for years, the ownership of property has been shared and has never changed, so when a foreigner comes in, he/she can not take the owner’s property (The Great Binding 73). Lastly, although it is mostly inferred, the …show more content…

One way, in which the Iroquois Constitution protects is by taking away their source of weapons. Since peace and nature is the main focus to the Five Nations, the peacemaker will confiscate all weapons and bury them under the Great Peace Tree, which represents unity and balance (The Great Binding 65). They want to keep the steady the minds of the clan members and they don’t want any outbreaks or fights. Now in the case of a war, which would occur if a nation refused to accept the Great Peace, weapons will be handed out to those fighting, but will be taken away as soon as the war is finished (The Great Binding 80, 83). Considering that peace is the primary concern within the nation, protecting the people is a natural instinct, protecting the nation as a whole is the duty of the Constitution. Section 87 states, “When the War of the Five Nations on a foreign rebellious nation is ended, peace shall be restored to that nation by a withdrawal of all their weapons of war by the War Chief of the Five Nations. When all the terms of peace shall have been agreed upon a state of friendship shall be established” (The Great Binding 87). In terms of protection and keeping peace, a home normally represent warmth and family, and no one wants to disturb it. If the owner of a home is absent, they will mark their house or a leave a sign indicating their missing presence (The Great Binding

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The Iroquois constitution and the United States constitution are very much alike, but they are also very different. A lot of things changed between the fifteenth-sixteenth century and September 17, 1787. These changes are extremely evident in the way the documents were written. The Iroquois constitution came into effect sometime around the fifteenth-sixteenth century. It was written by Dekanawidah, who was the leader of the Iroquois tribe as well as the six nations It was written to end the war and bring peace.

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Our US Constitution was influenced by the Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee). The Iroquois Confederacy contains six independent nations, Mohawk ("people of the flint country”), Oneida (“where they land the boats”), Onondaga (“people of the hills”), Cayuga (“where they land the boats”), Seneca (“the people of the big hill”) and Tuscarora (“people of the shirt”) which aligned with the Iroquois Confederacy in 1772. The US Constitution consists of a different assigned federal government to the three branches of the U.S. Government, Legislative (Congress), Executive (President), and Judicial (Supreme Court) branches to balance and separate power of government. For instance, the Iroquois Confederacy influenced acts of having the ability to remove

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Reading the Iroquois Constitution that was written by Dekanawidah; it strongly speaks of a “Tree of the Great Peace” on page 24, this peace of all the tribes that is held by a tree where the shade of the long leaves provides shelter and protection for only the people who live by the constitution. The Iroquois Constitution is primarily based on peace and the structure of the people, for example, stated on page 24 “ If any man or any nation

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During the early years of settler colonization during the 17th century, the Iroquois nation, rather known as the Haudenosaunee people, faced growing pressure to maintain legal traditions over time. The Iroquois practiced "the Great Law of Peace," or Kainerekowa, which is known as a "complex and sophisticated" legal tradition (Borrows, 73). Along with the Great Law of Peace, the Two Row Wampum, also recognized as the Gus Wen Tah, were important foundations of Iroquois customs. The legal tradition has been maintained till present day despite settler, American and Canadian attempts to eradicate the traditional law overtime. The Great Law of Peace extended to all nations of the Iroquois confederacy that is composed of five separate groups:

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Throughout history there have been links between the Iroquois constitution leading to the basis for the American Constitution. A constitution’s role is to help their country and benefit the people so things stay balanced and never lose control. As proof continues to build up, it shows that like the Iroquois the constitution holds several similar qualities on how to handle the economy and people. It has been thought, that the Iroquois have put the lining for the American guidelines. Though there are things that show to be the same, there are subtle differences that slip and show through.

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This was a time of incessant warfare among the Iroquois (Richter, 1992). This league had no intentions or desires to wage wars. Their main and sole purpose was to preserve peace. Religious practices were very important to them. They operated more on religious practices versus political ones.

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The Mohawk and the Seneca were the first to discuss laws, and passed them to the Oneida and the Cayuga, with final decision by the Onondaga (Keepers of the Council Fire) – confirm if others in agreement, or decide in case of disagreement (Iroquois League). The confederacy was very successful in uniting the nations and creating peace throughout. The peace had lasted for many years but only started to crumble due to population decline and change in their traditional ways. This change in traditional ways was due to the dependence on trade between the English and French. This started conflict between the nations and allowed the Iroquois to become “lazy” and search for easy and more efficient ways to living.

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The Iroquois were a very interesting read. Their value on peace and unity is a beautiful one. This idea of peace and unity between five different tribes quickly becomes a political structure. But how did that start? They are in close proximities which would make it convenient for them to live and organize amongst each other.

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The United States Constitution and the Iroquois Constitution both have many similarities and differences. However, the Iroquois Constitution came a couple centuries before the United States Constitution, so some of the ideas that were in the Iroquois Constitution are now included in the United States Constitution. But this does not mean these constitutions are the same, and this paper is going to help explain some of the ways they differ and share ideas. The first of the similarities is how the Iroquois have what they call the " Tree of Great Peace." This compares to what we have with the three branches of government.

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