Deganawida -The Great Peacemaker

Who is the greatest American most people never heard of?  If you ask me, that person is Deganawida, the native American spiritual leader who inspired the creation of the great Iroquois Confederacy. The binding laws of the Iroquois Confederacy provided much inspiration for Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin,  and their co-creators of the U.S. Constitution. 




Etching of Deganaweda

Deganawida is thought to have been born sometime in the 13th or 14th century.  What is known about him is imprecise because it all comes via oral history.  He was born into the Onondaga, or also possibly the  Mohawk tribes, both of which are indigenous to New York state, and the surrounding region. At the time of Deganawida's birth, the native American tribes in that region had a long history of bloody, intertribal warfare.  

Deganawida was a prophet.  Along with his disciple Hiawatha, he provided the vision and leadership that replaced confrontation and war with cooperation and friendship among six tribal nations, which became known as The Great Iroquois Confederacy. This Indian confederacy was quite possibly the first true democracy in the history of humanity.  The tribes that made up the confederacy were the Mohawk, Onondaga, Oneida, Seneca, Tuscarora, and Cayuga.  Together, they came to be known in native language as Haudenosaunee, which in English is the Iroquois Confederacy.

Deganawida's vision provided a powerful place for women in the process of governance. In the structure of the confederacy, the clans that made up each of the tribes were led by male elders, who were elected by the clan's women.  Decisions were made with thoughtful consideration for future generations.

Were credit given where credit is due,  the Iroquois Confederacy would be recognized in history books as a prime inspiration for the Constitution of the United States.  Moreover,  we might be celebrating  Deganawida, the Great Peacemaker with a national holiday in October instead of a brutal thug named Columbus.