Consensus is the primary mode of governance among the Haudenosaunee. It is one of three bedrock principles of the Kaya´nere´nhkowa (Great Law of Peace, or Constitution of the Five Nations), coming in under the discussion of Ne´â GaËshasden´âsa¨â, or popular sovereignty.
Consensus is a long process, designed neither for speed nor for efďŹciency, which are Western, not Iroquoian, values. Under Haudenosaunee law (and Iroquoian customs generally), the point of councilmanic discussion is not to âreach a decisionâ or âtake actionâ (again, European values), but to achieve the One Mind of Consensus. Consensus building was, therefore, the essential political ingredient in the operation of the league and other Iroquoian governments.Â
Under traditional government, in order to arrive at consensus, all minds had ďŹrst to be consulted. Consultation occurred through a set round of councils, each of which met to discuss the issue(s) at hand. The next council in line could not meet until its preceding council or subcommittee of council had come to an agreement on the matter. Both men and women had councils, with womenâs councils entertaining all issues ďŹrst. Each council level, whether female or male, had to be in consensus before it sent a matter forward. If the Adodaroh (chairman of the federal menâs Grand Council) or the Jigonsaseh (Head Clan Mother of the league) disagreed with a matter sent to him or her, he or she could âvetoâ or table it until a later time. Issues could be reintroduced as often as sponsors wished, and matters could always be revisited judicially, through the action of womenâs councils.Â
These rules exasperated Europeans who were accustomed to small, exclusive clusters of men making all decisions, whether or not others agreed. During the colonial era, various Crown forces attempted to push their own hierarchical styles onto the Iroquois, with little success. During the forced assimilation after the establishment of the United States, the womenâs councils were disbanded and Western-style government was foisted off on the people, but in the twentieth century, the old councilmanic styles have resumed. Although consensus is honored, womenâs councils have yet to reattain their formalized place.
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