August 2010 Communique

Contextual Understanding of Two-Spirit Peoplehood Mark Standing Eagle Baez, MA, CSP, LCDC Native American and First Nation (Canada) gay and bisexual people are a misunderstood and misrepresented group. This paper is a basic overview and a historical look at Native American and First Nation communities and their embracing of the "Two-Spirit" personhood.

According to Sabine Lang, author of "Man In tribal societies, m odern Native as Women, Women as Men," the American gays and lesbians regard the terminology of "Two-Spirit" originated in combination of masculine and feminine 1989 during an international/intertribal potentials as a more abstract, "spiritual" q u a lity in h e re n t, o r in b o rn , in gathering of gay and lesbian Native homosexuals.

Americans. Native American lesbians and gays have long been struggling to find an identity and to develop self- identifying terms appropriate to them. Although we understand there is increased acceptance of "Two-Spirit" societies, hate crimes continue to persist. They seek terms reflecting both their sexual orientation and their specific ethnic heritage. In tribal societies, modern Native American gays and lesbians regard the combination of masculine and feminine potentials as a more abstract, "spiritual" quality inherent, or inborn, in homosexuals (Lang, 1998).

A Historical View of Two-Spirit in Native America An extensive study of the "berdache" culture among Native Americans was conducted by Walter L. Williams (1986, 1992). In Williams' research, he describes the "berdache" as practice, social roles, and history, and also as an understanding of belief in sin and prejudice of sexual diversity from Europeans. Will Roscoe (1998), author of Changing Ones: Third and Fourth Genders in Native North America, said that upon arriving in the New World, explorers learned of cultures that did not adhere to the same social mores. Roscoe goes on to say that the notion of three, four, or even an infinite amount of gender Mark Standing Eagle Baez, MA, CSP, LCDC categories was the norm (1998). Roscoe also points out that men who lived as women, or "Two-Spirit Men," were not necessarily ostracized by their societies. In fact, some of these "Two-Spirit Men" were regarded as spiritual leaders (Roscoe, 1998; Williams, 1992; Lang, 1998). Williams (1986, 1992), states that many tribes see the berdache's role as signifying an individual's gifts as a -XXXII-