How (if at all) will tribal cultures and societies come to incorporate democratic ideals? The self-immolation of a man in Tunisia has literally sent dominoes falling across the Arab world. People are getting a taste of individual liberty and freedom that has long been denied. Obviously, the road forward will not be smooth. From where I sit in the west, there appears to be an inherent conflict between tribal society/culture and elements of democracy like majority rule and protection of minority rights. Is this conflict actually different from (less than?) what I may be seeing through my western eyes? Are there historical examples we can examine for how tribal societies morphed into more democratic ones? While no one can predict the future, what might historians say - fifty years from now - about how this drive for liberty and freedom played out? *** All European societies have tribal origins, if you go back far enough in the historical record. But who remember
The people of the Six Nations, also known by the French term, Iroquois [ 1 ] Confederacy, call themselves the Hau de no sau nee (ho dee noe sho nee) meaning People Building a Long House. Located in the northeastern region of North America, originally the Six Nations was five and included the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas. The sixth nation, the Tuscaroras, migrated into Iroquois country in the early eighteenth century. Together these peoples comprise the oldest living participatory democracy on earth. Their story, and governance truly based on the consent of the governed, contains a great deal of life-promoting intelligence for those of us not familiar with this area of American history. The original United States representative democracy, fashioned by such central authors as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, drew much inspiration from this confederacy of nations. In our present day, we can benefit immensely, in our quest to establish anew a