Who Wrote the Constitution?

Many people celebrate that the US is the longest continuously operating Representative Democracy. This is worth celebrating, if it were true. In fact, the longest running Representative Democracy is the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, a group of six Tribal Nations - Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora - who have lived in the area known today as the Northeastern US since time immemorial.

The Constitutional Framers were directly inspired to establish a Constitutional Republic by the Haudenosaunee, as evidenced by Ben Franklin’s 1744 writings on a meeting of the Haudenosaunee leaders, and his 1751 letter to his friend James Parker of New York. George Washington was known to admire the Haudenosaunee system of governance - although his admiration did not stop his assault against them, which earned him the nickname “Hanadahguyus” or “Town Destroyer”.

It’s not a stretch to suggest that most of the freedoms we value in our nation as Americans were inspired by the example provided by the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace, as no other representative republic or democracy was readily available to European settlers at the time - all European nations in the mid 1700’s were led by Monarchies, or similar hereditary leadership structures. The US adopted their symbols - the eagle, who is the messenger to the Creator; and the bundle of arrows, which represents the nations of the Confederacy. The Seneca tribe was even involved with and inspired the American Women’s Suffrage movement, as Seneca women held important public roles in their society.

In around 1140, the Great Law of Peace was established to strengthen each independent community, with a central government structure including:

1. A bicameral Great Council of “Older Brothers” (Mohawk, Onondaga, and Seneca), and the “Younger Brothers” (Cayuga and Oneida). The Tuscarora joined around 700 years after the original league, and are not represented directly in the Congress.
2. Clan Mothers, somewhat similar to a judiciary, who are appointed for life, and have the power to appoint and remove Chiefs.
3. 50 Chiefs who represent their tribes’ interest in the Great Council
4. Possible Pine Tree Chiefs, like a President, who may be appointed if he demonstrates exceptional ability to represent the Confederacy (currently none are appointed).

Haudenosaunee leaders were consulted during the drafting of the constitution, and they warned the Framers of two fatal flaws in our Constitution:

1. It codifies a caste system, namely chattel slavery; and
2. Women are excluded.

These two fatal flaws have continued to plague the goal of a “more perfect Union” over the past 250 years. White, land-owning men were prioritized at this Nation’s founding, and they continue to be prioritized in US law and culture. Each time marginalized communities have made progress toward equality, those who were unfairly privileged have worked to claw back those advances.

The backlash has been largely successful because the foundation of this country is inherently racist and sexist. The Haudenosaunee leaders warned the authors of the Constitution, and instead of heeding that warning, they established a union based on discrimination.