24 Virtual Field Trip: Two-Spirits
Virtual Field Trip: Two-Spirits
Native Americans traditionally assign no moral gradient to love or sexuality; a person was judged for their contributions to their tribe and for their character. It was also a custom for parents to not interfere with nature and so among some tribes, children wore gender-neutral clothes until they reached an age where they decided for themselves which path they would walk and the appropriate ceremonies followed. The Two Spirit people in pre-contact Native America were highly revered and families that included them were considered lucky. Indians believed that a person who was able to see the world through the eyes of both genders at the same time was a gift from The Creator. Traditionally, Two Spirit people held positions within their tribes that earned them great respect, such as Medicine Men/Women, shamans, visionaries, mystics, conjurers, keepers of the tribe’s oral traditions, conferrers of lucky names for children and adults (it has been said that Crazy Horse received his name from a Winkte), nurses during war expeditions, cooks, matchmakers and marriage counselors, jewelry/feather regalia makers, potters, weavers, singers/artists in addition to adopting orphaned children and tending to the elderly. Female-bodied Two Spirits were hunters, warriors, engaged in what was typically men’s work and by all accounts, were always fearless. (Indian Country Media Network, Two Spirits, One Heart, Five Genders
Your Field Guide
Explore the Required Website
- Website: Two Spirits, One Heart, Five Genders
For European settlers the Original Peoples way of life was perplexing, including the the Two Spirits tradition
Choose a Topic and Explore More Deeply
In addition to the required resources, choose one of these topics to dive deeper. Use these links, to learn more about your topic:
People
- Article: We’Wha the Revered Zuni Man-Woman
- Movie: Two-Spirits
Two Spirit Powwow
- Video: Largest Two-Spirit Pow Wow in the Nation
- Video: Two great Vids Sharing Two-Spirit Pride Powwows.com
- Video: BAAITS Two-Spirit Powwow Grand Entry 2016
- Video: 2017 San Manuel Powwow – Sweetheart Couple, Two Spirit, FNX Native Television
Meet Sean Synder (Navajo & Southern Ute) and Adrian Matthias Stevens (Shoshone Bannock, Ute, Apache), who entertained the crowd at the San Manuel Powwow during the sweethearts couple performance. - Video: Two Spirits, One Dance for Native American Artist, AJ+
“Two-spirit” is how some Native Americans describe people whose gender identity doesn’t fit as strictly male or female. Meet Ty DeFoe, who’s using traditional dance to take this gender identity back from the negative connotations established during colonization.