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Wasáse: Indigenous Pathways of Action and FreedomPublisher: Broadview Press (August 4, 2005) |
| The word Wasáse is the Kanienkeha (Mohawk) word for the ancient war dance ceremony of unity, strength, and commitment to action. The author notes, “This book traces the journey of those Indigenous people who have found a way to transcend the colonial identities which are the legacy of our history and live as Onkwehonwe, original people. It is dialogue and reflection on the process of transcending colonialism in a personal and collective sense: making meaningful change in our lives and transforming society by recreating our personalities, regenerating our cultures, and surging against forces that keep us bound to our colonial past. | |
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The Idea of the Noble SavagePublisher: CBC Radio Canada (April 2000) |
OriginsProud, close to nature, intuitive rather than intellectual, vicious in ballet yet spiritually vibrant. These are the prevalent traits ascribed to the Noble Savage. The images which make up this figure pervade the culture and politics of North America today. Here, with time of Columbus and culminates the discussion with the philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Return of the Noble SavageIn the first segment, we traced images of the Noble Savage as they travelled from the New World back to the Old. Here, we move from the Old World, principally from the political philosophy of Rousseau, and moved back to the New, in order to see how the idea transplanted itself onto the Canadian Cultural and political landscape. |
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Peace, Power, Righteousness: An Indigenous ManifestoPublisher: Oxford University Press (April 1999) |
| Peace, Power, Righteousness: An Indigenous Manifesto is a political manifesto
A timely and inspiring essay that calls on the indigenous peoples of North America to move beyond their 500-year history of pain, loss, and colonization and make self-determination a reality. Taiaiake Alfred, a leading Kanien’kehaka (Mohawk) scholar and activist, urges Native communities to return to their traditional political values to educate a new generation of leaders committed to preserving indigenous nationhood. Only a solid grounding in traditional values and the principles of consensus-based governance will enable Native communities to heal their present divisions, resist assimilation, and forge new relationships of respect and equality with the mainstream society. Familiar with Western as well as indigenous traditions of thought, the author presents a powerful critique of the intellectual framework that until now has structured not only relations between indigenous nations and the state, but the internal politics of colonized communities. Yet he does not condemn non-indigenous people; instead, he invites them to transcend historical prejudices and join in the struggle for justice, freedom, and peace. |
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Heeding the Voices of Our AncestorsPublisher: Oxford University Press (July 1995) |
| This book is the first comprehensive study of the driving force behind Native political activism, and the only scholarly treatment of North American Indian politics which integrates an explicitly Native perspective. With a broad historical scope rich in detail, and drawing on the particular experience of the Mohawks of Kahnawake, it offers an explanation of Indian and Inuit political activism focusing on the importance of traditional values and institutions in shaping Native responses to the state.
The book explains the recent rise of a militant assertion of sovereignty on the part of Native people in terms of three major factors: the existence of alternative institutions in the body of the nation’s traditional culture; the self-conscious development of an alternative identity; and a persistent pattern of negative interaction with the state. It differs from other analyses focusing on similar factors in that it views nationalism not as a movement which activates in response to external factors, but as a persistent feature of political life which manifests itself in either a latent or active form in response to the interaction of the three factors discussed in the model. |
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Gerald Taiaiake Alfred
is an author, educator and activist who is committed to Indigenous peoples' dignity, freedom and nationhood.
Taiaiake was born in Montreal in 1964 and was raised on the Kahnawake Mohawk Territory. Except for service in the US Marine Corps during the 1980s, he lived in Kahnawake until 1996, when he moved to the west coast.
Educated at Concordia and Cornell, Taiaiake has lectured at universities and colleges in Canada, the United States, England and Australia, and has served as an advisor on land and governance issues for his own and many other Indigenous governments and organizations. ...Read Entire Bio
Tetewarihwáthe'te [Kanienkeha] a Mohawk word meaning "Let's all make the matters brighter and more clear."
