Confederacy comes to Kahnawake 

Kahnawake was abuzz last weekend, with around 800 people coming out from across the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to the 207 Longhouse for this year’s Fall Sing.

“The highlight of the day was sitting on the bench during our sets and feeling the energy between singers,” said Atewenniióstha Jacobs, one of the main organizers of the event.

Jacobs was the head of the women’s section of Tsi Kanawaien’kó:wa Ronterennótha’, Kahnawake’s mixed gender singing group. They were one of three singing groups representing Kahnawake, along with the all-women’s group Tsi Kanawaien’kó:wa Kontiiá:tases and the all-men’s group Tsi Kanawaien’kó:wa Rotihsken’rakéhte’.

Registration started at noon and the Sing officially started at 1 p.m., with 11 groups signing up to share their songs. It’s the first time since 2015 that Kahnawake has been host to the event.

“It was a great turnout, and I was happy to see people across the Confederacy come and share their songs with us,” she said.

The concept of the Sing has been around since the 1940s, when the Haudenosaunee communities of Tonawanda and Cattaraugus started to have a kind of benefit social between their respective singing societies.

“Back then, they would sing and do tasks that would benefit the people,” said Kahnawa’kehró:non Teiotièntaron McComber. “The singing societies were, and still are, benevolent societies that help with people within our communities that need financial aid or some other kind of help.”

Since then, the Sing has grown and now happens twice a year in the spring and in the fall.

“Now, singing societies are all over the Confederacy,” McComber said. “It’s a group where you come together to learn with a good outlook on the world, connect through songs, and travel together to all the different communities.”

This year, McComber took on the role of president for the Sing, which is a responsibility offered up at each Sing that is meant to move around the communities. McComber said that he decided to put his name in for the role because it’s been over 10 years since anyone from Kahnawake has taken it on, and he wanted younger community members to see someone from town hold the position.

Part of McComber’s role was to hold a meeting in between the Sing and the subsequent social, where he met with the head of each singing society to decide where the next Sing is going to be – the next Spring Sing will be held in Ohi:yo’.

During that meeting, communities also share news of what kind of fundraising and aid activities their societies have been up to since the last Sing. McComber said that Kahnawake shared how they’ve been working hard to make the singing group more visible, and to inspire young people to get involved, particularly by hosting socials and singing in schools.

“We’re trying to get people who are sticking around, learning ceremony, learning songs, just to get a group together and build a sense of camaraderie to these younger people,” he said.

Sako Antone, who is from Oneida, travelled to Kahnawake for the Sing with his 13-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. He said he specifically made an effort to attend the event when he found out Kahnawake would be hosting, because he has fond memories of travelling to the community as a child with his father, when he went for work and ceremony.

“Him and the other old timers would always stress the importance of how close our communities were and how we need to keep that friendship strong,” Antone said.

He said it was a special experience to share with his kids.

“For my daughter, it was her first time attending a Sing that she will have memories of. I took her to a couple when she was very little, but she doesn’t remember those, and having it take place in Kahnawake was extra special for her,” he said. “She knows the history of our two communities and how much her grandfather was liked there.”

Antone said it’s important that all communities continue to show up for and take responsibility for the Sing.

“It not only benefits the community that’s hosting it, but it also benefits the Confederacy as a whole, because a lot of people from the Six Nations will travel to the community that’s hosting the Sing,” he said. “You get to meet new people, see friends and family that you haven’t seen in a while, and you also get to meet and see some up-and-coming speakers and singers.”

Attendees were also treated to a delicious meal of cornbread, sausages and roast, and meat pie, prepared by organizers, and the event was also supported with a $5,000 donation thanks to Tsotso’s duck race, which was held back in September.

That event was held in honour of Tsótewe Stacey, who passed away after a car accident in 2023 at the age of 18.

Her parents, Jolene Bear and Skarón:iati Stacey were glad to support the event

“The money from the duck race this year couldn’t have gone to a better cause when it comes to our traditions and our youth,” Bear said. “Our spirits were lifted for sure, as well as everyone’s that was there too.”

Tsótewe had been a fierce advocate for language and culture, and the Sing therefore meant a lot to the family.

“I was feeling the energy in the house by sitting and observing everyone,” Bear said. “The elders, the young ones, the children, it was just so peaceful.”

The Sing ended with a vibrant social, which kept on going until nearly 2 a.m. – meaning that many attendees were in the Longhouse sharing their song and meeting new and old friends for more than 12 hours.

“The social was a great turnout, there were barely any seats open to sit, but it was more than we expected,” Jacobs said. “It was a wonderful feeling to have people across the Confederacy here to dance and have a good time.”

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