When I first read this poem I was excited because I felt it was perfect for the type of work I do. I focus primarily on political art and have participated in community peace organizing.

I understood how the poem was inspired from the Iroquois legend about the Peacemaker and the forming of the Iroquois Confederacy because of a Native American religion class I had taken. I tried to incorporate much of the inspired imagery from this legend with imagery pertaining to the United States and its part in the war on Terrorism. The Peacemaker buried the weapons of war beneath a white pine, for example. Instead of historic Iroquois weapons, I put modern ones such as tanks and bombs. With a closer examination to Native American culture, I feel the United States can lean a lot, particularly pertaining to peace.