Constitution's Native American Roots: Influence And Impact

The US Constitution, signed in 1787, is often thought to have drawn inspiration from ancient Athens and the European Enlightenment. However, several scholars have argued that the ideas for the Constitution were influenced by Native Americans, specifically the Iroquois Confederacy, a powerful tribal government in upstate New York. The Iroquois Confederacy, along with other Native American governments, provided a real-life example of federalism and democratic principles, which the Founding Fathers may have studied and incorporated into the Constitution. While there is debate over the extent of this influence, it is generally recognized that Native American political thought played a role in shaping the US Constitution.

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The Iroquois Confederacy

The Confederacy was likely formed between 1142 and 1660, but there is little consensus on the exact date. The formation of the confederacy is credited to Deganawidah the Great Peacemaker, Hiawatha, and Jigonsaseh the Mother of Nations. The Peacemaker story of Haudenosaunee tradition credits the formation of the confederacy, between 1570 and 1600, to Dekanawidah (the Peacemaker), who persuaded Hiawatha, an Onondaga living among Mohawks, to advance “peace, civil authority, righteousness, and the great law” as sanctions for confederation. The confederacy was intended as a way to unite the nations and create a peaceful means of decision-making.

Benjamin Franklin was closely involved in negotiating and printing treaties with Native nations, including the Iroquois Confederacy, and studied their systems of governance. The Founding Fathers who signed the Constitution had deep familiarity with Native nations, some having negotiated treaties or engaged in diplomatic relations with them.

Tribal sovereignty

The United States Constitution mentions Native American tribes three times. Article I, Section 2, Clause 3 states that "Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States ... excluding Indians not taxed". Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution states that "Congress shall have the power to regulate Commerce with foreign nations and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes", determining that Indian tribes were separate from the federal government, the states, and foreign nations.

The first treaty signed between the United States and a Native American tribe was with the Delaware Indians in 1783. This treaty borrowed heavily from British Indian policies from before the Revolutionary War. Native Americans in the newly formed United States often had to convince new citizens of the country to allow them to continue their existence within their lands.

Tribal governments are responsible for a broad range of governmental activities on tribal lands, including education, law enforcement, judicial systems, healthcare, environmental protection, natural resource management, and the development and maintenance of basic infrastructure.

In 1978, the Supreme Court ruled in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe that tribes lack the inherent authority to arrest, try, and convict non-Natives who commit crimes on their lands. This ruling has been criticized as it has led to crime rates on Indian lands being twice as high as other areas.

Influence on Founding Fathers

The US Constitution, signed in 1787, is often thought to be influenced by ancient Athens and the European Enlightenment. However, several scholars argue that the Founding Fathers were also influenced by the political systems of Native American tribes, particularly the Iroquois Confederacy.

The Iroquois Confederacy was a powerful tribal government in upstate New York, comprising the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca nations. In 1722, the Tuscarora nation joined the Iroquois, also known as the Haudenosaunee. Each tribe handled its own affairs, but they also came together to form a unified government, enabling the Iroquois to become the predominant Native American tribe in the northeastern United States. This federal-style government, with its separation of military and civil leadership, protection of certain personal freedoms, and democratic policies, would have been familiar to the Founding Fathers, some of whom had negotiated treaties or engaged in diplomatic relations with Native nations.

In 1987, historians held conferences to discuss the influence of the Iroquois Confederacy on the US Constitution. In 1988, the US Senate passed a resolution acknowledging this influence, stating that "the confederation of the original 13 colonies into one republic was influenced by the political system developed by the Iroquois Confederacy, as were many of the democratic principles which were incorporated into the constitution itself.”

The Founding Fathers were interested in adopting a system of governance that enabled them to assert the sovereignty of the people over vast geographic expanses. The Iroquois Confederacy provided a real-life example of this, which European political theories could not. Benjamin Franklin, for instance, was closely involved in negotiating and printing treaties with the Iroquois Confederacy and studied their systems of governance.

However, it is important to note that the democratic nature of the US Constitution was also shaped by other influences, including the civil rights amendments adopted after the Civil War. Additionally, some scholars argue that the Founding Fathers did not emulate Native American systems of governance, and that the evidence for Iroquois influence is largely circumstantial.

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Indigenous rights and duties

The United States Constitution mentions Native American tribes three times. Article I, Section 2, Clause 3, states that "Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States...excluding Indians not taxed". Article I, Section 8, Clause 3, states that Congress has the power to "regulate commerce with foreign nations, states, and Indian tribes". This clause establishes that Indian tribes are separate from the federal government, the states, and foreign nations. The third mention is in Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which addresses the handling of "Indians not taxed" in the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives.

Native American tribes have rights and powers via their tribal governments. The idea that tribes have an inherent right to govern themselves is at the foundation of their constitutional status. This right is not delegated by congressional acts, and Congress cannot unilaterally limit tribal sovereignty. The tribes are assumed to possess all powers unless a treaty or federal statute removes them.

While the exact nature of Indigenous rights and duties is not explicitly outlined in the Constitution, we can look to the governmental structures of Indigenous tribes to understand their approach to rights and duties. Indigenous tribes had a wide variety of government models, ranging from relatively complex to simple, and from nearly autocratic to highly democratic. Many tribes generally separated military and civil leadership, guarded certain personal freedoms, including freedom of religion, and included democratic policies for referendums, vetoes, and recalls. Additionally, many tribes gave women a significant role in government.

In contrast to a rights-based approach, Robert J. Miller notes that many tribal cultures emphasise the duties of individuals to their community and government rather than their rights. This perspective on governance and the individual's relationship to the community represents a significant departure from the rights-based framework commonly associated with Western political thought.

It is also worth noting that the United States government has not always respected the rights and sovereignty of Native American tribes. While the federal government has a duty to protect the tribes, critics have argued that inadequate funding and support for tribal courts and law enforcement have hindered their ability to effectively govern and protect their people. Additionally, the Supreme Court's ruling in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe in 1978 limited the tribes' authority to arrest, try, and convict non-Natives who commit crimes on their lands.

Democratic political theories

The US Constitution, signed in 1787, is often said to be influenced by ancient Athens and the European Enlightenment. However, several scholars, including Robert Miller, a legal scholar, tribal court judge, and citizen of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, argue that the ideas for the Constitution also came from Native Americans.

In the 18th century, tribal governments across what is now the US had a wide variety of government models, ranging from complex to simple, and from autocratic to democratic. The governments of eastern North America that the Founding Fathers were most familiar with were confederacies of tribal nations, including the powerful Iroquois Confederacy in upstate New York. The Iroquois, Shawnee, Cherokee, and other political formations generally separated military and civil leadership, guarded certain personal freedoms, including freedom of religion, and included democratic policies for referendums, vetoes, and recalls. Most also gave women a large role in government, something that did not make its way into the US Constitution for over a century.

Benjamin Franklin, who was closely involved in negotiating and printing treaties with Native nations, including the Iroquois Confederacy, studied their systems of governance. In 1988, Congress passed a resolution formally acknowledging the influence of the Iroquois Confederacy on the US Constitution. The resolution stated that ""the confederation of the original 13 colonies into one republic was influenced by the political system developed by the Iroquois Confederacy, as were many of the democratic principles incorporated into the constitution itself”.

The Iroquois Confederacy provided a real-life example of some of the political concepts the framers were interested in adopting in the US Constitution. The constitutional framers sought to borrow aspects of Iroquois government that enabled them to assert the people's sovereignty over vast geographic expanses, as they found no governments in Europe with these characteristics. The confederation of six nations, including the Mohawk, Seneca, Onondaga, Oneida, Cayuga, and eventually the Tuscarora people, enabled the Iroquois to become arguably the predominant Native American tribe in the northeastern United States before the arrival of European colonists.

While the influence of Native American political thought on the US Constitution is undeniable, it is important to note that the democratic nature of the US Constitution was also refined and extended by the civil rights amendments adopted after the Civil War, which were not conceived with Iroquois principles in mind.

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