Learn About The Proto-Feminism Of The Haudenosaunee At The National Museum Of The American Indian

UPDATE, March 9: The Haudenosaunee events have been canceled, unfortunately. We will keep you posted if and when the events get rescheduled.

As part of Women’s History Month, the National Museum of the American Indian is hosting two free events that examine the Haudenosaunee women of western New York.

“For centuries now, the Haudenosaunee women of New York State have lived equally with their male counterparts in a way their non-Native neighbors often have not. In fact, when women in the state began to organize for their rights in 1848, they looked to Haudenosaunee women for inspiration and guidance.” 

While many people may be familiar with first-wave feminism and the landmark Seneca Falls Convention, fewer have dug deeper into the history of this slice of the northeastern Native American confederacy. The two-day program is comprised of a panel discussion and an all-day workshop. Here are the details: 

Thursday, March, 12p: Join three innovative, knowledgeable women as they share their thoughts on the subject in a free public panel discussion. The conversation may cover early American feminism, landscape and design architecture and matrilineal aspects of Haudenosaunee cultures. 

Friday, March 13, 10a: Delve deeper through an all-day workshop with the panelists, designed especially for people active in landscape architecture, historic preservation, or social justice communities. The workshop is $30, including lunch, and will focus on building knowledge of Haudenosaunee culture and developing tools and perspectives for rethinking and enriching memorials, exhibitions and landscapes.

To register or learn more, click here. 

photo: Caroline Parker Mountpleasant, a Haudenosaunee woman from the Seneca people, circa 1840; Arthur C. Parker Collection of Negatives, Rochester Museum and Science Center.