Constitutions & Governance
Independence: Revolution and the U.S. Constitution in Indian Country
Cultures need rules to live by, otherwise there is chaos. Lawyers and courts, in fact 1/3rd of the foundation of Canadian and U.S. governance (judiciary, executive, legislative) is related to the enforcement and interpretation of laws, the highest law being a “constitution,” a written document. Native Americans, except for the Inca, Mayan and Aztec, had only beginnings of a written languages, let alone a written constitution. Think of these History Lesson Series like the human body: The brain and nervous system are the legal structure “Governing” today requiring electricity (power) and a complex language to communicate. Refined in America and Canada, originating in England, the World would be in chaos today without our system founded on individual freedoms and property rights, all under a Rule of Law. It, and the Christian religion, allowed the evolution of our culture leading to the American West’s concepts of women’s suffrage, systemic discrimination, and equal pay. Pioneers and Indigenous cultural roots were/are not that much different, evidence the Makah & Norse Longhouses. We are all brothers and sisters, our mitochondrial DNA attesting, but when the unwritten Indigenous’ could not pass down by word of mouth from elders who were killed by plagues the next generation suffered. In Europe ancestors (children of Abraham) relied upon the Bible, the first mass printed document. Today, we rely on written “constitutions.” Legal and illegal behaviors are based on the law. Immoral and moral behaviors are based on cultural and spiritual beliefs. Can the topic, “caring for the Earth,” that is not found in any constitution, continue to ignore the Bible and Indigenous Peoples’ spiritual beliefs” … people, today, who continue to consider Genesis 2: 15 their moral code?
References below trace Colorado’s path to statehood in 1876, the formation of its government, and the writing of its constitution
http://www.historycolorado.org/story/seasonal/2018/07/20/11-things-you-didnt-know-about-colorados-path-statehood
https://spl.cde.state.co.us/artemis/hedmonos/hed62c711927internet/hed62c711927vol1internet.pdf
https://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/another-look-at-the-1876-election/
https://reason.com/volokh/2018/08/01/colorados-early-self-government-and-path/
time-immemorial-tribal-sovereignty
state/education/constitution
https://wals.info/feature/131A#0/27/147
Genesis 2:15 cites the first expectation of humans (following that of a week having 7 days), that is:
Both to care for and use the Earth
Limited to only using the Earth
Limited to only caring for the Earth
State of Colorado History
Constitutions & Governance
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