Haudenosaunee Feminism: A Journey of Notable Haudenosaunee women and their contributions to Canadian Feminism by

Kahnawake, QC, Canada

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-13 20:28:42 UTC

Mary Two Axe-Early was born in Kahnawake, QC. She moved to New York City and married an Irish-American. After the death of her friend who had lost her status from her marriage to a non-status man, this began her journey as an activist for both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous women's rights. (Robinson, 2017; Brown, 2017)

Ottawa, ON, Canada

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-13 22:09:56 UTC

The Royal Commission on the Status of Women held a hearing in Ottawa in 1968. 30 women from Kahnawake, including Mary, made the trip out there to present to the commissioners. (Montour, 2021) Their statements prompted the Commissioners to include the recommendation "that the Indian Act be amended to allow an Indian woman upon marriage to a non-Indian to a) retain her Indian status and b) transfer her Indian status to her children." (Bird, 1970)

Edmonton, AB

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-13 22:33:43 UTC

The organization Indian Rights for Indian Women was formed by women who had their status revoked after marrying a non-Indian or a non-status man. Mary, along with Nellie Carlson, was one of the founding members and contributors to the group in their advocacy for the removal of Section 12(1)(b) of the Indian Act.

Six Nations of the Grand River, Ohsweken, ON

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-13 22:58:32 UTC

Yvonne Bedard was a status member of the Six Nations of the Grand River. She married a non-Indigenous man in 1964 and later separated in 1970 and moved back to Six Nations to discover her status was revoked after her marriage. After an eviction notice was issued by the Six Nations Band Council, she filed an injunction and requested for ruling on gender discrimination in section 12(1)(b) of the Indian Act.

Supreme Court of Canada, Ottawa, ON

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-13 23:10:20 UTC

Bedard's case was merged with Jeanette Lavell, an Ojibwe woman from Manitoulin Island also advocating against the Indian Act and failed in the Ontario Superior Court. The case was heard before the Supreme Court of Canada,though it did not decide in their favor. Their work paved the way for other women to fight discrimination and for the removal of section 12.

Mexico City, Mexico

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-14 02:03:10 UTC

60 women from Kahnawake, including Mary, traveled to Mexico City for the International Women's Year conference in 1970. There she learned that she was going to be evicted from her home in Kahnawake and used that to plead her case of gender discrimination to an international audience. The eviction was later rescinded.

Kahnawake, QC

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-15 01:00:02 UTC

Mary Two-Axe Earley died at her home in Kahnawake in 1996 at 84. Her legacy still carries on inside the Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Women who continue to advocate for the end of gender and racial discrimination in Canada. (Deer, 2021)

Six Nations of the Grand River, Ohsweken, ON

theresabenedict37 — 2023-12-15 01:03:57 UTC

Yvonne Bedard died in 2021 at the age of 84. Her fight for the rights of Indigenous Women paved the way for other women to push for Indigenous Women's rights.

Kahnawake, QC

theresabenedict37 — 2024-04-23 23:36:47 UTC

Kahentinetha Horn is now 84 years young and still working hard for the betterment and prosperity of the Haudenosaunee people. She proved her dedication and tenacity over the years through her grassroots activism, radical anti-feminism, and her role as a matriarch that the role of Haudenosaunee women as leaders is a lifelong committment.

Akwesasne, ON

theresabenedict37 — 2024-04-23 23:45:57 UTC

In 1968, Kahentinetha Horn supported the community of Akwesasne in their protest blockade against the unfair duties when crossing the USA/Canada border in Cornwall, ON. The community refused to comply with border and police officials and asserted their right to cross their territory freely without hindrance from the international border. Horn was both an organizer and participant, being seen arrested along with other protestors by the Cornwall City Police.

Kahnawake, QC

theresabenedict37 — 2024-04-24 02:48:50 UTC

Kahentinetha Horn was born in 1940 in Brooklyn, New York to Mohawk parents from Kahnawake, QC. Her family returned to the reservation, where she was witness to the construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway through Kahnawake lands. Along with being a student at Sir George Williams University, Kahentinetha was a fashion model, a civil servant for various federal departments, and also a voice of Haudenosaunee activism in her late twenties.

Buckingham Palace, London, UK

theresabenedict37 — 2024-04-24 03:06:40 UTC

Kahentinetha never let anything stop her from getting out the message regarding the struggles of Indigenous Peoples and advocating for the sovereignty of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. She traveled to Buckingham Palace in May of 1969 to deliver a letter to Queen Elizabeth II requesting that the Jay Treaty of 1794 be upheld and formally recognize the rights of Indigenous peoples crossing their territories.