Membership Law Hearing continues tomorrow (Tuesday) at Golden Age Club

04/11/2016

The Mohawk Council of Kahnaw�:ke (MCK) would like to remind Kahnawa�kehr�:non that the next meeting on proposed amendments to the Kahnaw�:ke Membership Law will be held tomorrow (Tuesday) evening at the Golden Age Club.

The agenda includes the on-going effort to complete the Definition of �Great Grand Parent� and Section 15 (�Application Process/Approved Kahnaw�:ke Residents�). Should these be completed, Sections 16, 17 and 18 on �Entitlements;� �Privileges;� and �Responsibilities of the Kanien�keh�ka of Kahnaw�:ke� and Section 19 on the �Obligations of Approved Kahnaw�:ke Residents�)  will be discussed.

�We really hope to gain consensus on the �Great Grand Parent� definition issue,� said Membership Portfolio Chief Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer. �The Membership Department will be presenting lineage charts to show how it would be impacted should blood quantum be used as a criterion in this clause. Hopefully, this presentation will allow the community to gain a clearer understanding on the issue and to then move forward.�

�Unlike the moratorium and the original 1984 Mohawk Law on Membership, blood quantum is not the defining factor in the current law,� she explained, �Nonetheless, it still comes up in discussions and is very difficult to steer completely away from.�

This will be the eleventh meeting in the First Hearing phase of the Community Decision Making Process. The meeting starts at 6pm sharp and will run until 8:30pm.