PROPOSAL

THE
JAKE THOMAS
LEARNING CENTRE

INTRODUCTION

The Iroquois traditions of the Hotinonshón:ni people are rapidly being lost since the implementation of the Indian Act in Canada, each generation has witnessed the progressive "forgetting" of the ways of their ancestors which gave the good character to these people. Education in the "knowing" of the "dominant" society and denigration of traditional languages, life ways, and spiritual practices have devastated the self respect and effectiveness of the individual lives of native peoples all across Turtle Island. Now the young people are once again asking the "old ones" about these good ways of their ancestors.

The Jake Thomas Learning Centre on the Six Nations Reserve near Brantford has been actively working to conserve and revitalize this now fragile cultural knowledge of the Hotinonshon:ni.

Jacob E. Thomas was born in 1922 into the Snipe Clan of the Cayuga Nation. "Jake" was raised in the traditions of the longhouse speaking his Cayuga language. He became a skilled carver of traditional masks and ceremonial items, and later a long time teacher of Native Studies at Trent University. He became an eloquent orator and teacher of Hotinonshón:ni ways. He spoke all five languages of the Iroquois, including reading and writing Mohawk, Cayuga, and Onondaga languages. He was among the first of the modern Elders to speak the longhouse traditions in English so that the young people and everyone could hear these things in a language they understand.

Since the seeds of its inception in 1993, The Jake Thomas Learning Centre has been a place to learn the languages, the "traditional arts, and to hear once again the teachings of The Great Law, the Creation, and the Gaihwíyo of Handsome Lake in English as well as the three languages of the Hotinonshón:ni. In addition an ambitious audio/video recording and publication program has resulted in a catalog resource which is utilized by many native and non-native individuals and institutions needing authentic access to the traditions.

The Centre has been gently taking shape first out of Jake and Yvonne Thomas's own house and later out of a modest 300 sq. ft. building located on land set aside in trust. Today a growing awareness of the fragility of traditional knowledge has been accompanied by some meaningful donations including important consulting services and a barn which must be relocated onto the Centre's site at Six Nations.

This Proposal has been prepared to consolidate and clarify the vision of Jake Thomas and the activities of the Centre created in his name. The strong support needed to develop the programs, publications, and facilities will ensure that the young people today and our future generations will always remember the ways which have given them their good character.

Onen.