https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2023.2235629

Sultana, A., Wilson, J., Martin-Hill, D., & Lickers, A. (2023). Water Insecurity and Maternal Health Among Haudenosaunee Women in Canada. Medical Anthropology, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2023.2235629

Water is central to Haudenosaunee knowledge, philosophy, and culture. The health of Haudenosaunee mothers is tied to that of water. Today, the lack of access to reliable drinking water for Six Nations is a significant health concern. Technical measurement of water advisories in Canada fails to understand the interwoven relationship that Haudenosaunee women have with water. Highlighting the voices of 55 Haudenosaunee women, we provide expanded definitions of water insecurity and maternal health to include more-than-human beings. This comprehensive understanding of water insecurity and health shapes SN mothers’ experiences with water in a settler colonial state, affecting their holistic wellbeing.

The research documented in this article stems from a community-led project in collaboration with Six Nations of the Grand River (SN) in southern Ontario that uses Indigenous knowledge and western science to seek sustainable solutions to water security, water sovereignty, and water governance. In partnership with the Six Nations Birthing Centre (SNBC), an Indigenous organization, we sought to highlight the interrelationship between water and maternal health, guided by Haudenosaunee environmental and political philosophy.

Water has a profound meaning in Haudenosaunee knowledge and philosophy. It is the main component of the Haudenosaunee creation story according to which the Sky woman fell in the water on a turtle’s back and said: Nék ne ohné:ka í:ken, “it’s all water” (McQueen Citation2020). Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen (Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address) thanks water and all creations, teaching the interrelatedness of all parts of the natural world. Water is in the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace, according to which the peacemaker traveled through the water to unite five founding Nations. Water also played a vital role as a symbol of friendship, peace, and righteousness in the Wampum belt, known as Kaswenta. Haudenosaunee worldviews make strong connections between women and water. Women carry life in water, and that intimate link between the two is understood as a feminine bond, a reciprocal relationship of protection. In Haudenosaunee knowledge, women reflect water as they sustain life in the water in their womb. Although everyone is responsible for protecting water, Haudenosaunee women speak for the water (Martin-Hill et al. Citation2022; McGregor Citation2008). Mohawk midwife Katsi Cook (Citation2018) emphasizes the connections and embodiment of women and Earth as they both nourish and sustain life through interconnectedness and interdependencies. “We know from our traditional teachings that the waters of the Earth and the waters of our bodies are the same water. The follicular fluid which bathes the ripening ovum on the ovary; the dew of the morning grass; the waters of the streams and rivers and the currents of the oceans – all these waters respond to the pull of our Grandmother Moon. She calls them to rise and fall in her rhythm. Mother’s milk forms from the bloodstream of the woman. The waters of our bloodstream and the waters of the Earth are all the same water” (Cook Citation2018, pr-1).

However, this relationship between Haudenosaunee women and water has been damaged by Canadian colonial assimilationist policies such as the Indian Act and residential schools. The Indian Act destroyed the leadership roles and community decision-making power of Haudenosaunee women by replacing the traditional confederacy with elected band councils (Kolahdooz et al. Citation2016; Martin-Hill et al. Citation2022). Children were forcibly put into residential schools away from mothers’ and communities’ care, resulting in the loss of traditional language, knowledge, and connections with the land (Cave and McKay Citation2016). Although Indigenous women play significant roles in protecting water and are spokespersons for water (Anderson Citation2010; Baird et al. Citation2015; Longboat Citation2015; McGregor Citation2012), as a result of settler-colonialism, Indigenous women have not been included in the decision-making process about water (Cave and McKay Citation2016).

It is well established that water insecurity disproportionately affects women and their health and wellbeing due to their responsibilities as caregivers (Collins et al. Citation2019; Ennis-McMillan Citation2001; Hanrahan et al. Citation2014; Tallman et al. Citation2022; Wutich Citation2009; Wutich and Ragsdale Citation2008). Research mainly focused on the Global South has demonstrated that women are more affected by water insecurity than men due to discriminatory gender division of labor in households, lack of access to resources, and neglected leadership (Parker et al. Citation2016; Tallman et al. Citation2022). Studies link water insecurity and negative health impact on women, including intimate partner violence, stress, and anxiety (Collins et al. Citation2019; Workman and Ureksoy Citation2017). However, very few studies have assessed the impact of water insecurity on Indigenous maternal health in the Global North. In Canada, considerable research has focused on water issues in Indigenous communities and health (Bradford et al. Citation2016; Dupont et al. Citation2014; Hanrahan et al. Citation2014; Ilyniak Citation2014; McGregor and Whitaker Citation2001; Simpson et al. Citation2009) but very few studies have investigated the interrelationship of water insecurity with Indigenous mothers’ health. To our knowledge, this research project is one of the first to document how water affects the holistic (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual) health and wellbeing of Haudenosaunee mothers in Canada.

https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2023.2235629