Democracy. “The American Dream” is, for us, about freedom. Freedom to live in a society where you can, in a very significant manner, express one’s life creation in the way one desires. Specifically, it is a freedom derived through the personal responsibility claimed and established by our founding fathers, in which each individual gets the same single vote in the say of how society is governed {i.e. what is right, what is wrong, what is important} and what is valued as a collective. This is a system in which the collective’s participants are required to regularly reflect on what our laws deem valuable in order for our collective body to evolve in a healthful and balanced way.

Democracy has the potential for anything that can be agreed upon; potential to take care of those who need care; potential to protect those that need protecting; potential to foster the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health of every individual; potential to create a culture that produces vital art; potential to regulate behavior by what is fair and right; potential to treat all beings equally; potential to create a society that acknowledges and nourishes its relationship with what is wild, with the environment and which designs itself to live in harmony with all living things.

Any discrepancy with what is and what could be… any shortcomings… are ours to remedy.

Democracy. This is Democracy. Our democratic celebration of our American society and it’s massive potential for even more — this is what the creation of the Constitution breathed into mainstream reality over 200 years ago, beginning officially on March 4th, 1789. A day which, we believe, could be & should be one of our greatest and most cherished holidays.

The Constitution. Self-Evidence salutes the potential for a better world by recognizing and honoring the US Constitution. When we read it we were inspired by their active, participatory example, both by what they set out to achieve and of the achievement they succeeded in manifesting. From a largely blank canvas, a system was born based on ideals, principles, and practices of a collective deciding of what’s fair and right. This was also a visionary achievement meant to evolve as its participants do – over time – and we are ready for the next step toward restoring balance.

Indigenous & Feminine Wisdom. Our world suffers greatly from a growth and “modernization” disconnected from the wisdom of our ancestors and of the considerations made for future generations. Many scholars believe The Great Binding Law of the Iroquois nation inspired both Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin in the authorship of The Constitution. A primary element of The Great Binding Law, however, which was not adopted into the US Constitution is that The Great Binding Law put specific power in the hands of women as stewards of right decision-making as the first ‘check’ in the maintenance of power and balance on the land. For the Iroquois, mature women were fundamental to the selection and removal of leaders from position of power if their actions drifted from supporting the collective vision. Their presence as stewards gave them power to decide on land-use issues and a veto power over war. The Iroquois system also supported the handing down of a family’s power through the female side. The Feminine was specifically valued in the native version of balanced governance on this land, a quality which has, for some time now, been called forth by a voice growing in volume and clarity. For the good of our country, our planet, all our relations.

Self-Awareness. Wise thinking is the foundation upon which Democracy is able to realize its full potential. If The American Dream is founded on The US Constitution, and if this is most powerfully utilized by the participation of wise and practiced individuals, then the wisdom of the individual should also be the goal of our collective intention. Self-Evidence aims to inspire self-awareness in the visitor by creating an opportunity for participation. Amidst inspiring sound-scapes and recordings inside the tipi, the visitor is invited to express his/her answer to the question: To What Do You Pledge Your Allegiance? Self-reflection is the foundation for self-awareness, the source of wisdom, the basis for fairness & compassion & love, the best qualities to activate when creating and participating in any social contract.