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Hi Sheena,
Thanks for
choosing to stand together! Here is Daily Fact #2:
Recorded
on a beaded Wampum Belt, one of the first treaties between First Nations and
Europeans dates to 1645 and was called Kahswenhtha, or “Sharing the same river;
steering our own boats.”
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Share
this fact to
educate others, then join the discussion on Facebook or on Twitter (@FreeTheChildrenand @MAboriginalEdu) using #westandtogether. At the end of the
campaign, create your own Daily Fact and share it with Free The Children and
MAEI here.
Remember, there
are also issues backgrounders, lesson plans and other great resources on the We
Stand Together Resources webpage!
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Historically,
Wampum belts were often made as a way of recording an agreement or treaty
between different First Nations. They were made with Wampum beads, which were
carved from a valuable kind of seashell. One of the first peace treaties
established between the Iroquois Nation and Europeans in the 1600s was named
Kahswenhtha, and was also symbolized by a belt made using Wampum
beads.
The
Kahswentha belt has two parallel rows of purple Wampum beads on a background of
white beads. The white beads symbolize the purity of the peace agreement, and
represent “the river of life.” The two rows of purple beads represent the two
groups of people involved in the agreement: namely, the First Nations Peoples
and the Europeans.
Kahswenhtha
embodies the concepts of peace, friendship and respect. It was created to
emphasize the peaceful co-existence of the Europeans with the First Nations
Peoples. “Sharing the same river; steering our own boats” refers to the two very
different cultures, customs, traditions and ways of life of the two Peoples.
With the signing of the treaty, both Peoples agreed to follow their respective
customs without interfering with those of the other.
For
more information, check out:
http://www.iroquoismuseum.org/ve11.html
http://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100032291/1100100032292
http://www.akwesasne.ca/tworowwampum.html |
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