Two-Row, Dish with One Spoon, and Understanding Toronto and Me

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University of Toronto *

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Jan 9, 2024

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Two-Row, Dish with One Spoon, and Understanding Toronto and Me. Reflection Paper Due: Monday, October 24, 2022 ● Drawing upon the “What Clay are you Made of?” discussion board, lectures, and videos that have shown how Indigenous peoples use kinship relationships, treaty relationships, and reciprocity to create understanding and maintain peace. ● As noted, in the Dish with One Spoon, a treaty that pre-dates contact with Europeans, Indigenous peoples agreed to share the bountiful resources of the natural world. Agreeing to never use any sharp instruments like a fork or knife that might cause a wound or bloodshed—only taking what they need, being grateful for the reciprocity of the natural world, and always leaving something for future generations. Another part of this was of course, to keep the dish clean. ● The Two Row Wampum belt is an early treaty between the Dutch and Mohawks, and eventually between the Haudenosaunee and English—cementing the two vessels in the river of life. In the canoe were Indigenous values, knowledge systems, and governance. In the boat was the European values, knowledge systems, religions, and governance. ● It is the expectation of the teaching team that you explain to us how you fit into one of these two models of treaty relationships. Furthermore, we want you to situate yourself in what you see as your responsibilities to the treaty you identify with—our thinking is that Indigenous Students may opt to examine their own responsibilities through the Dish and non-indigenous students may wish to examine their responsibilities via the Two Row. ● Finally, we do a land-acknowledgement at the U of T, as do many places in Canada—so situate yourself in how you benefit directly from the past relationships (benefits can be past, present and future relationship), reciprocity, and responsibilities of agreements made between our nations and ancestors that continue to ripple forward to our class, our time, and a burden we all must carry if we are to be in good relations with each other. Dr. White Explanation of Assignment ● Asking us to think about what our responsibilities are to treaties ● Whether we’re recently arrived settlers, or we have been here for generations, we are encouraged to think about our relationship to the Two-Row Treaty ● For me, I have to think about my obligations under the Two Row ● If we live here, we are all under obligation to treaties ● Two-Row comes along in the 1600’s - 1614 ● Originally between the Dutch and Mohawk ● They agreed that they were in their boat as the Dutch, and they were in their canoe as the Haudenosaunee, and they were bound by this chain of friendship between us, between the vessels. ● They agreed they would not interfere with the governance, beliefs or culture of the boat or canoe ● They respected the sovereignty of each other and formed an alliance

● When the Dutch left the New World, it was handed over to the English and the English agreed to abide by it with the Haudenosaunee ● Two Row is still in effect today ○ Ex. Recent election in Canada, Dr. White, as a Haudenosaunee person who believes in the Two-Row and honours the Two-Row, did not vote. ○ Because to him, that would be interfering with the governance of the boat ○ The boat (Dutch, English, Canadian) has always interfered with the canoe ● The final aspect of this is what responsibilities I hold as a student living here in Toronto. ● There are a lot of working mechanisms in this but too often people frame the treaties as being too old to be honoured in law ● But the Two Row is an agreement that is still valid, still honoured and still enforceable in the courts ● For Europeans, the treaty marks the end of negotiations, but for Indigenous community and culture, the treaty marks the beginning of the new relationship ● Chicago Citation style Course Materials and Lectures Relevant to my essay ● Lecture 4 - Treaties and Wampum Belts ● Who is a Guest, Who is a Settler ● Rick Hill ● Concept of “One Mind” Rick Hill Video ● Historically, people have misinterpreted the space between the boat and canoe as a figurative wall that divides settlers and Indigenous peoples, but Hill explores how these groups are intended to interact ● Oral Narrative of what the Two Row is ● Inspiration for agreement (5:52) ○ Dutch man negotiating with Mohawk man ○ The Creator put in their minds a desire for peace, making it easy for them to come to one mind ○ The Dutch Man says: “if we do not do something, it will always be this way. Is it possible to form an agreement so we can live in peace” ○ Mohawk Man (Ongewhowe): “What you have in mind is good. The Creator did not intend that we would live in discord, and we should respect one another” ● “Part of the inspiration behind this was, in order for us to live as intended, we have to make peace” (6:41) ● “Treaty making is an extension of the rafters of our longhouse. An extension of the principles of the great law to the people who now enter the territory” (6:48)

● Symbols of this agreement: ○ First we agree to have friendship and love as the Creator intended ○ In this way we will have peace ■ “According to Great Law, if we treat each other as members of the same family, we won’t fight” ■ “If we treat you like our relative, even though you’re from the ship, and you treat us like your relative, hopefully, we can have this friendship and love, and then we can have peace between us” (7:25) ○ This will be symbolized by the earth, the Creator’s creation, and its happenings. ■ “This treaty will be binding as long as the sun rises in the east, as long as the grass turns green a certain time of year, as long as water flows downhill” (7:55) ■ So in other words, as long as nature is alive, these agreements are meant to be alive ○ Second, we’ll take each other by the hand (take ahold of each other’s arm) ■ Becomes a metaphor for treaty making ■ When we meet each other, not only will we shake hands, but we link our arms together (8:13) ● Look at Creation Story and Great Law ● Dutch man proposed, in order to make this relationship secure, we are going to connect the canoe and boat with a chain. ● The chain would be three links. ● The first link would represent ○ Friendship ● The second would be ○ Both having good minds ○ Bringing our minds together as one, but we will also have good minds to do that ● Third would be ○ There will always be peace ○ If you do those first two things, you will always have peace When analyzing the term, “coexistence” it evokes the definition: the state or fact of living or existing at the same time or in the same place with other animate or inanimate things. What this definition fails to denote is the gray area that lies between existing among other living things - the complexities of sharing space mindfully with what surrounds you. The notion of existing consciously and mindfully of the things around you became particularly significant when societies and cultures began to interact on larger scales, seen in the development of international trade and in the dawn of exploration. When European exploration guided settlers to Turtle Island, the inherent value of cognizant, and considerate relationships were underscored by the evident cultural and social divides between themselves and the Indigenous population they encountered. In 1614, Dutch settlers and the Mohawk embarked to define their

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relationship through a Wampum Belt, eventually characterized as the Two Row wampum belt . The Two Row Wampum belt depicts two vessels - a boat and canoe - that in their paths, never converge so as to not interfere with the journey of either - representing the relationship between the Dutch and Mohawk peoples. Despite the binding nature of the Two Row, many have, regrettably, rendered it expired due to its age. As a non-Indigenous Canadian, I hold an enormous obligation to the Two Row treaty, as my existence is dependent on the land Indigenous peoples have nurtured since time immemorial. To capture my responsibilities as a subject of the Two Row, I will first define what the Two Row encapsulates, explore the work of Ruth Green in her quest to define what it means to be a settler on Turtle Island, and finally establish my responsibilities as a First-Generation Canadian, settler. The Two Row Wampum Belt illustrates the benevolent, and reciprocal relationship ratified by the Dutch and Haudenosaunee to ensure peaceful and productive coexistence among one another. The belt depicts a boat (representing the Dutch), and a canoe (representing the Mohawk), maneuvering parallel to each other, in an unobstructed path so as to not interfere with the journey of either entity. Between the two vessels is a three-link silver chain, representing the values of friendship, a good mind, and peace. This delineates the Dutch and the Haudenosaunee, and their promise to not impede on the governance, beliefs or culture of either - defining their relationship as being separate, but equal. Indigenous scholar, Rick Hill, defines the current relationship between Indigenous peoples and settlers as being a dichotomy; an “us versus them” dynamic (Hill, defdlbb). Due to colonial efforts to deteriorate Indigenous sovereignty , notions of independent, equal coexistence outlined in the Two Row collapsed. The product of this forced assimilation was the swamping of the canoe with the contents of the boat, subjecting Indigenous peoples to flounder in between the two. According to Hill, in order to truly abide by the Two Row, we must first emancipate the canoe of the colonial weight it carries in order to foster an independent, but equal relationship between settlers and Indigenous peoples. This is alternatively known as decolonization, which requires the collaboration of both Indigenous peoples and settlers. For many settlers, acknowledging they have directly and indirectly benefited from the displacement and oppression of Indigenous peoples is an unappealing sentiment to claim. Despite its guilt-evoking nature, it is a reality we must accept in order to revive the relationships defined in the Two Row. In beginning to acknowledge how I, as a settler, have benefitted from occupying this land, I must consider how I came to be here at all. My siblings and I are the first of my family to be born in Canada, with our father being a Palestinian refugee, and my mother escaping former Yugoslavia. Both my mother and father sought refuge in Canada to escape lands enduring violent occupation and demolished by war. For us to not acknowledge the losses and suffering of Indigenous peoples who endured unimaginable hardships and land loss would be pathetically ironic and ultimately render any resentment I hold toward the nations that displaced my mother and father, invalid. Although acknowledgement is significant, it does not fulfill the responsibility I hold as a settler to Indigenous peoples as per the Two Row agreement. In an attempt to establish what responsibilities settlers hold to Indigenous peoples as hosts of Turtle Island, Indigenous scholar Ruth Koleszar-Green,

aims to define the roles of settlers in her article: What is a Guest? What is a Settler? Green emphasizes the reciprocal nature of the intended relationship between Hosts and Settlers, in which Indigenous hosts have historically maintained the role of teaching settlers how to live on this land and sharing essential, land-based knowledge. Hosts were also expected to learn the customs of the Guest, to allow optimal understanding between the two. In exchange, Green highlights the role of settlers as learning and respecting the protocols of the nations they encounter. Green clarifies that the protocols of a settler’s own nation do not have to be forgotten, however, it is their responsibility to learn and follow the protocols of the host. This reciprocal relationship fosters a space where different nations share teachings and build relationships as two independent peoples bonded through understanding and respect, aligning with the purpose of the Two Row . In applying this ideology of learning the protocols of the nation whose land you inhabit, this may occur through teaching and celebrating Indigenous traditions the same settlers have done for ‘Canadian’ traditions. For example, treating Truth and Reconciliation Day the same we would Remembrance Day; understanding the value of Indigenous traditions and celebrations much as my family came to understand ‘Western’ ones such as Thanksgiving, and ultimately showing support for decolonization initiatives that would help restore the foundations of the Two Row. Colonization has been irrevocably damaging to Canada’s Indigenous peoples and continues to obstruct their way of life enormously. In recognizing that, I must also concede how I, as a First-Generation Canadian, have benefitted from a system that has wronged Indigenous peoples for generations. The same Canadian government that unashamedly neglects Indigenous peoples is the same government that welcomed my culturally-alienated parents. Due to the same system that has failed Indigenous peoples, I am able to attend school, acquire a job, and have the potential to live a fulfilling life; opportunities stripped of Indigenous individuals equally as capable as myself. Because I was given the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education on land that I have settled on, it is my responsibility to learn and respect the ways of the people who founded, protected, and inhibit this land before all else. While I am cognizant of this responsibility, I am also obligated to share this knowledge with others to enable collective respect for the Two Row agreement. Coexisting is riddled with complexities and complications. Fostering meaningful coexistence in which settlers reciprocally understand and respect the ways of Indigenous peoples as they have done for us, is vital in restoring and upholding timeless treaties such as the Two Row. ● so situate yourself in how you benefit directly from the past relationships (benefits can be past, present and future relationship), reciprocity, and responsibilities of agreements made between our nations and ancestors that continue to ripple forward to our class, our time, and a burden we all must carry if we are to be in good relations with each other. ● Protocols of an individual own nation are not to be forgotten, however it is one’s responsibility to learn and follow protocols of the hosts ● This creates a space where different nations share teachings and build relationships as the Traditional person and new community share the importance of respecting protocols

Guests ● When Jacques Cartier landed, he and his crew were approached in friendship by the people there and they were taught how to survive in Mi’kmaq territory ● Hospitality included civility ● It would have been against Mi’kmaq understandings to not share, provide and teach guests all that the Mi’kmaq knew ● These intentions included a reciprocal relationship between teaching and learning ○ Learning the guests’ religious ceremonies and sharing traditional Mi’kmaq ceremonies ○ Teaching guests to respect the spirit of the animal ● Entrance Ceremonies ○ Guests are expected to explain who they are, where they are coming from, how they got to “this place, and what their intentions are in entering the community ○ Host community members would respond with their own stories so they both had an understanding of “this place” ○ When the hosts felt they understood the intentions of the guests to be honourable and good, they were allowed to enter the Longhouse/community ○ Once a guest has been allowed to enter, they are allowed to return ○ Treated as family ● Guests have as many responsibilities as a host ● Learning about the diverse protocols of different nations is an important role of a guest so there can be respectful engagement ○ Learning protocol is a responsibility ● When in a new territory, it is expected one is to behave and learn the protocols of that territory ● “When you are away from home, you accept the teaching even if it is not your teaching” ● Protocols of an individual own nation are not to be forgotten, however it is one’s responsibility to learn and follow protocols of the hosts ● This creates a space where different nations share teachings and build relationships as the Traditional person and new community share the importance of respecting protocols

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