Women as Source
Means began his discussion of the importance of matriarchies as a source of guidance in a troubled world by articulating the basis of all matriarchal
societies: awe for the woman as life giver. He observed that the calibration
of the human gestation period of 280 days with great astronomical cycles
indicates "the woman is in rhythm with the entire universe." "Men get in
rhythm by honoring the female," he said.
Conflict Resolution through Mothering Values: Deep Listening and Respect
Speaking about the Lakota, in particular, he noted that the matriarchal
social structure affords "instant conflict resolution." "The clan system
solves problems in days, if not hours, and everyone comes away feeling good about themselves," he observed. This is because every problem and decision is taken into counsel and worked until unanimous consent is reached. "Even if it takes you sometimes a year to reach a decision, you have no one disgruntled and talking behind your back -- because everyone has come to agreement."
"We never made the mistake of adopting democracy," Means asserted. "Majority rules means a minority suffers, and that minority must endure it until they become a majority. If that is civilization, I'm uncivilized."
Implying that all indigenous cultures were originally matriarchal, he
maintained, "No weapons of war from a pre-Colombian grave have been found."
Working in Harmony with Nature as Mother
As a matriarchy, the Lakota follow the principle of "natural law," he said,
"which means that when you need a tipi pole, you ask the tree, the earth,
and all the creatures and plant life around it for permission. If you want
deer meat, corn, grass for a skirt, you must ask permission and ask for
forgiveness." Natural law, he said, also means that you don't completely
destroy a beehive and the queen when you want honey, and you don't decimate a bush by eating all of its berries. "Living with life is a lot more
scientific than living without it," he commented. "It requires powers of
observations, patience, and the applications of the teachings of the
ancestors."
A matriarchal social structure also promotes social harmony, Means said, in that a husband and wife do not have to answer to their respective
mothers-in-law. The life of the wife continues to center around her mother's
longhouse, and the husband does not presume to get involved in those
affairs. "No mother-in-law problems!" he exclaimed humorously.
Sufferings under Patriarchy
The dislocations and traumas imposed upon the Lakota and other peoples by patriarchal Europeans have severely impaired such societies from being able to function normally, Means, a long-time activist for Native American rights, reported sadly. On the Lakota reservation, where he lives, the average life expectancy is 48 years, unemployment is 87 percent, the school dropout rate is 70 percent (starting in grade school), and the suicide rate is the highest in the world. "But that's where my people are and where
natural law still functions, and I love my people," he said. "They're worth
saving."
How we may support the restoration of matriarchies that have been thusly
assaulted -- and how we may apply lessons from matriarchal societies to
current global problems -- has been the ongoing work of modern matriarchal studies, under the leadership of Heide Goettner-Abendroth, and the gift economy movement, under the leadership of Genevieve Vaughan, for several decades. Conferences, a book of essays, university courses, and specialized list serve in which members of matriarchal societies, scholars, activists, artists, and others have contributed attest to the energy around these topics and the hope they offer for the future. See more below.
More on Matriarchies, Past, Present, and Future
To join the campaign to promote matriarchal values worldwide, consider
signing the newly penned Matriarchal Manifesta
Visit the Second world congress on matriarchal studies site (with audios and videos of many of the presentations):
See also the first world congress on matriarchal studies (with links to the
Hagia Akademia website, which coordinates much activity on matriarchal
studies):
Read the book Societies of Peace, with essays on matriarchies worldwide:
Introduction to the Gift Economy (with articles by Gen Vaughan and others,
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