On August 24, 2002 an historic event took place at the Pennsbury Manor, the former estate of William Penn in Morrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, that marked a new beginning of brotherhood between the Lenape Indian Tribe and the people that neighbor the Delaware River. A treaty of renewed brotherhood was signed by the Lenape and a number of organizations, including environmental groups, churches, historical societies, and sincerely committed individuals, who wish to actively support Lenape culture and to help sustain their people, language, and way of life. The signing was prefaced by an equally historic and monumental three-week canoe journey, which began at the top of the Delaware River in Hancock, N.Y. and culminated in Cape May, NJ. It was agreed that the re-signing of the Treaty, as well as the River Journey, would take place every four years and did so again in the years of 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018. It is now time to take this important journey again and sign the Treaty of Renewed Friendship in 2022.
The journey down the Lenape Sipu (Delaware River) is a joint effort to raise awareness, awaken the spirit, and bestow the past, environmentally, culturally and historically, to the future. It is meant to promote the awareness that the Lenape people living in Pennsylvania are carrying on their ancestral traditions, culture and spiritual beliefs, and that they are engaged in numerous projects to provide practical ways for all citizens to respect and protect our homeland and the health, welfare, and future of the next seven generations of our children. Our aim is to promote the awareness that the state of Pennsylvania is one of only a few states in this country that does not recognize its indigenous people, and to invite citizens and political representatives to sign this treaty so that we may fulfill the dream envisioned by our founding fathers, William Penn and Chief Tamanend. Finally, we desire to put the fear, pain and humility of the past behind us, once and for all, and to walk together into the future.
The Treaty states that those who sign acknowledge the Lenape as the indigenous caretakers of these lands and agree to support the Lenape Tribe in their own unique way. Although this is not a legal, binding document, it is an agreement of heart, mind and spirit. Its words carry the integrity of our ancestors and the hope of our children. Those organizations and individuals who sign this treaty will forever be a part of our mutual history and the stories that we tell our children. They must make the commitment to “stand up well” as a living testament to the fact that environmental, cultural, and historical awareness is the key to our future.
All sincerely committed individuals and organizations are invited to join in the journey down the Delaware River, and to join NCHGS and the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania in signing the Treaty of Renewed Friendship.
The Treaty signing will take place at 5:00 PM in the John R. Austen Auditorium of the Sigal Museum.