Did you know that the legal justifications for colonization have remained the same since 1493, and are even in use today in New York State?

Come explore the roots and impacts of the Doctrine of Discovery, how the treaties can guide us towards repair, and the ways you can be part of changing history and protecting the land you call home.

This is a rare opportunity to hear firsthand from leaders of the Onondaga Nation and Haudenosaunee Confederacy, whose ancestors have known the lands of NYC and NYS for thousands of years. You won't want to miss it!

November 18th evening program:

6:30pm - doors open, light buffet-style dinner offered

7:00pm - opening from Tadodaho Sidney Hill, Onondaga Nation

7:15pm - film screening excerpt from The Doctrine of Discovery: Unmasking the Domination Code (run time 20 mins)

7:35pm - treaty talk and NYS/NYC context for the Doctrine of Discovery from Elder Jake Edwards, Onondaga Nation, and Betty (Lyons) Hill, Onondaga Nation and Executive Director of American Indian Law Alliance

8pm - Q+A with the audience

8:25pm - closing from Betty (Lyons) Hill

This event is a benefit for the Onondaga Lake #landback (#lakeback!) campaign run by The American Indian Law Alliance (AILA), which is based in Syracuse, NY, and also works in NYC. AILA was founded in 1989 and is an Indigenous, non-profit, non-partisan organization that works with Indigenous nations, communities, and organizations in our struggle for sovereignty, human rights, and social justice for our peoples.

Masks are welcome and will be provided.

Speaker biographies:

Tadodaho Sidney (Sid) Hill, Onondaga Nation, Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Born to Eel Clanmother Phoebe Hill, Sid was raised in the traditional ways of the longhouse. Always an advocate for human rights and the environment, as a young man, Sid traveled in 1973 with a delegation from the Onondaga Nation in support of the Oglala Lakota people on Pine Ridge in protest of corruption involving then Tribal President Richard Wilson and the failure of the United States Government to fulfill treaties. A lifelong lacrosse player, Sid is one of the founding members of the Iroquois National Team, and was chosen as the team captain for the Australia games in 1984. In 1996. Sid was chosen to “warm the seat” of the title of Tadodaho and was selected in 2002. This title is unique as this lifetime position is the only title chosen by the other 49 chiefs of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Sid is working daily on such issues as International Indigenous issues, the Doctrine of Discovery, hydrofracking, and commerce, to name a few, together with all the daily issues facing the Haudenosaunee. One of his most important responsibilities is ensuring the Haudenosaunee continue their traditional teachings. Sid has had the honor of opening the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues for over ten years. He takes this responsibility extremely seriously and has a deep understanding of how all decisions and actions impact the Haudenosaunee.

Jake Haiwhagai’i (He speaks with a strong voice) Edwards, Onondaga Eel Clan, lives on the Onondaga Nation Territory. He maintains the continuity of the Longhouse oral teachings. The Onondaga govern and teach within an oral tradition that is over a thousand years old. Jake is the 11th child in a family of twelve children. He grew up among his elders of the Onondaga Nation, learning and sharing the messages from the original instructions, passing on history and knowledge of the natural world.

Jake was appointed by the Grand Council of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to the Haudenosaunee External Relations Committee to respectfully work on political and governmental structures beyond the borders of Haudenosaunee Country. This work includes diplomatic work at the United Nations and other entities outside the Confederacy. He is a board member of the Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples and a board member of the Indigenous Values Initiative. Jake was one of the primary voices leading the 400th anniversary (1613 – 2013) of the Two Row Wampum Campaign, in which people in canoes paddled the waterways from the Onondaga Nation Territory to the United Nations in NYC, teaching people at stops along the way.

He actively reminds people of the significance of our treaties and reflects upon decisions that will protect the people into the seventh generation. Jake explains how wampum laid the foundational principles and structure of the United States Constitution.

Gaeñ hia uh, Betty (Lyons) Hill, President & Executive Director of the American Indian Law Alliance (AILA), is an Indigenous and environmental activist and citizen of the Onondaga Nation. Betty has worked for the Onondaga Nation for over 20 years. Ms. Lyons serves as a member of the Haudenosaunee External Relations Committee and has been an active participant at the annual United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) since the first session in 2001 as a delegate of the Onondaga Nation. Betty attended Cazenovia College and is a Bryant Stratton College Graduate of the Paralegal Program. In 2023, she received an honorary degree from Onondaga Community College (OCC) in honor of her advocacy. In 2024, she received a lifetime achievement award from the NYC Bar Association for her work advocating for Indigenous nations and peoples.

Under the Leadership of Tonya Gonnella Frichner, Betty worked closely with AILA since 1997 and joined AILA in 2014. During her time at AILA, Betty has worked on numerous issues, including: advocating for the Rights of Mother Earth, Treaty support, educating on the Doctrine of Discovery, advocates for Indigenous Nations and peoples at the United Nations, Right to Self Determination and Sovereignty, teaching the Indigenous history of women’s rights, honoring the Two Row Wampum Treaty in New York City, polishing the Covenant Chain with the United States as part of the Canandaigua Treaty obligations.

Betty continues to work for the protection of Indigenous peoples who are fighting to protect their traditions, territories, resources, and care for Mother Earth.

Out of her concern for Indigenous peoples and Mother Earth, Betty serves on numerous boards like: Connie Hogarth Center, Center for Earth Ethics, The MOST, Skä•noñh- Great Law of Peace Center Academic Collaborative, she is an Advisory Committee Member for the National Institute for Law and Justice, and is Co-Chair of the Center of Earth Ethics Advisory Board.

Thank you to our sponsors NY Society for Ethical Culture and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice!

Unraveling the Roots of Colonization in New York State

A benefit for the #landback return of Onondaga Lake