What Does Indigenous Participatory Democracy Look Like? Kahnawà:Ke's Community Decision Making Process

Producer
Review of Constitutional Studies
Year

With the 1979 Community Mandate to move towards Traditional Government, the community of Kahnawà:ke has consistently requested more involvement in decision-making on issues that affect the community as a whole. The Kahnawà:ke Community Decision Making Process is a response to the community's call for a more culturally relevant and inclusive process for making community decisions and enacting community laws. The Process is a transitionary measure to assist and facilitate the legislative function of Kahnawà:ke governance. This paper examines the development of the process and how it functions in the modern setting of Kahnawà:ke with the goal of illustrating Indigenous participatory democracy in action.

Resource Type
Citation

Horn-Miller, Kahente. "What Does Indigenous Participatory Democracy Look Like? Kahnawà:Ke's Community Decision Making Process." Review of Constitutional Studies. Vol. 18, No. 1. 2013. Paper. (https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers2.cfm?abstract_id=2437675, accessed June 4, 2024)

Related Resources

Image
Mohegan Tribe: Legislative Functions Excerpt

ARTICLE IX. - POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE TRIBAL COUNCIL  Section 1. - [Generally.]  All legislative and executive powers of The Mohegan Tribe not granted to The Council of Elders shall be vested in The Tribal Council and shall be exercised in accordance with this Constitution and laws of…

Image
Best Practices Case Study (Participation in Decision Making): Gila River Indian Community

Gila River Indian Community, which borders the Arizona cities of Tempe, Phoenix, Mesa, and Chandler, has nearly 17,000 tribal citizens. Half of the population is younger than 18. Like youth elsewhere, Gila River youth are challenged by a host of problems. Gang violence, drug and alcohol abuse, and…

Image
Tribal Constitutions and Native Sovereignty

More than 565 Indigenous tribal governments exercise extensive sovereign and political powers within the United States today. Only about 230 of the native communities that created these governments, however, have chosen to adopt written constitutions to define and control the political powers of…