""Today, we are gathered, and we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now we bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as people. Now our minds are one."

These are the opening words to the Thanksgiving Address at the center of a persistent disagreement in the Salmon River Central School District.

"The words that come before all else" had been heard with the daily announcements and Pledge of Allegiance at the main campus and the St. Regis Mohawk Elementary School until a complaint came last year.

The passage was labeled a prayer by attorneys advising the School Board. The lawyers say its recital was a violation of the separation of church and state.

Mohawk students and parents say it is a cultural expression, not a prayer, and should be allowed.

Sixty percent of Salmon River's students and about 15 percent of the teaching staff are Native American. A majority of the nine-member School Board are Mohawks."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Mohawks' Thanksgiving Address may yield to intelligent compromise (The Plattsburgh Press Republican 9/15)

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