Seneca Nation presses Trump to reverse 'Lake America' order
Why it matters: The dispute adds Indigenous treaty claims to a US-Canada naming fight tied to the trade rift.
Seneca Nation of Indians President J. Conrad Seneca called on President Donald Trump to rescind an executive order that renamed Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” calling the move “unpresidential” and disrespectful to Indigenous history. In a Friday message, Seneca said the lake’s traditional Seneca name, sga:nyodai:yoh, means “beautiful lake” and reflects longstanding ties of the Seneca and other Haudenosaunee nations to the waterway. He argued the order turned the lake into a political tool during a trade dispute with Canada and violated US commitments under the 1794 Canandaigua Treaty, which he said promised peace, friendship and the free use and enjoyment of Seneca lands.