Land Recognition

We recognize that The Center: 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection occupies the ancestral land of the Ho-Chunk people. Please take a moment to celebrate and honor this ancestral Ho-Chunk land, the sacred lands of all indigenous people, and the voices and lives of Two-Spirit and indigenous LGBTQ people.

The creation of the term “two-spirit” is attributed to Elder Myra Laramee, who proposed its use during the Third Annual Inter-tribal Native American, First Nations, Gay and Lesbian American Conference, held in Winnipeg in 1990. The term is a translation of the Anishinaabemowin term niizh manidoowag, two spirits. Though it was only formally adopted in 1990, the term Two-Spirit — an umbrella term that encompasses a number of understandings of gender and sexuality among many Indigenous North Americans — has its roots in traditions and cultures dating back centuries. “Two-Spirit refers to the commonly shared understanding among many Native American Tribes that some individuals manifest both masculine and feminine spiritual qualities.” “Two Spirit people have both a male and female spirit within them and are blessed by their Creator to see life through the eyes of both genders.” “Two-Spirit is a term used to identity, reclaim and revitalize very specific identities histories, legacies and power that go far beyond just sexuality and gender identity for Indigenous peoples.” These identities were recognized and celebrated from a young age as “gifts from the creator”; Two Spirit people were often the visionaries, healers and medicine people. The term Two Spirit affirms the interrelatedness of all aspects of identity — including gender, sexuality, community, culture, and spirituality. Many Two Spirit people were lost due to the impacts of colonization, their complex, un-binaried gender system too threatening to Western attitudes. A key aspect of the Two Spirit community now is to reclaim pre-colonial traditions and responsibilities. Understanding of the complexities of Two Spirit identity helps build insight of culture and intersectionality.

https://outalliance.org/understanding-two-spirit-identities/
https://lgbtqhealth.ca/community/two-spirit.php
https://www.them.us/story/inqueery-two-spirit