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Wampanoag knowledge
Our matrilineal roots
With inheritance and descent determined through our women:
Land use was passed through women.
Men left their communities and families to live with their wives' communities and families.
Women controlled the gardens and food disbursement.
Men had to obtain permission from the women to go to war.
Elder women settled domestic disputes and notified the men of their decisions.
Government was egalitarian, and both genders could be leaders.
There was no domestic violence, rape, or violence against women, with no words in any Native language for such things.
Our leadership*
Female leaders were called Saunkskwas and male leaders, Sachems. Together, they:
Protected and negotiated the collective rights of the related families within their homelands, while respecting the collective decisions of their people
Ensured the sustenance and survival of their kin—both the current generation and those to come
Renewed the relationships of kinship and alliance through seasonal councils and gatherings
Respected the land (a living system, not a bounded "thing"), and all the plants and animals in it, on which their long-term survival depended
Cultivated diplomatic relationships across the region, negotiating agreements regarding boundaries between peoples
Did not rule their people in the non-Native sense, where terms like “property” and “dominion” defined relationships to land and power
*From Our Beloved Kin by Lisa Brooks
Our Three Sisters Gardens
Gardens have traditionally belonged to women, and, in addition to providing physical nourishment, show how we should interact with each other. These gardens are created by:
Planting by wetlands and waterways
Mounding hills that looked like pregnant bellies, instead of digging into the earth
Companion-planting the Three Sisters—corn, beans, and squash—which thrive when they are planted together
Beans give nitrogen to the soil, while the others feed off of it.
Corn stalks provide structure for the beans to grow up.
The giant spiked squash leaves cover the ground to protect the moisture in the soil.
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Sharing knowledge
TRANSITION HOUSE TWO DAY SUMMIT: BEYOND SURVIVORS AND ABUSERS, REFRAMING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
October 28, 2021 and October 29, 2021
What does it look like when we center the voices and experiences of those who are most impacted by violence?
What happens when the broader community takes ownership of the problem and solutions to domestic violence?
How do we work toward community awareness and action to close persistent gaps in ending domestic violence?