For Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr, and Queer Pri Month, Dennis Zotigh, a cultural specialist at the Natnal Mm of the Amerin Indian, ved Native iends to tell how their tradnal culture saw s LGBTQ members. A Chirihua Apache iend replied, “Now, Dennis, this is a human qutn, not [jt] Native.” We agree. But we also appreciate hearg what Native Amerins have learned, renstcted, or been unable to renstct about this part of our shared history and experience.
Contents:
- TWO-SPIR PEOPLE: GAYS ACCEPTED BY NATIVE AMERINS
- NATIVE AMERIN YEARNS FOR OLD VIEWS OF GAYS, LBIANS
- THE SURPRISG HISTORY OF GAY MARRIAGE THE NAVAJO NATN
- MORE THAN JT THE “GAY INDIANS”
TWO-SPIR PEOPLE: GAYS ACCEPTED BY NATIVE AMERINS
June is Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr, and Queer Pri Month the Uned Stat. Native natns are siar to other world populatns the mographic reprentatn of lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr dividuals. Adopted as part of the morn pan-Indian vobulary 1990 durg the third annual ter-tribal Native Amerin/First Natns Gay and Lbian Amerin Conference, Wnipeg, Manoba, refers to dividuals who intify as lbian, gay, bisexual, queer, transgenr, transsexual, or genr-fluid.
For our pri observance this year, the mm asked our Native iends, “How did your tribe tradnally view dividuals who are lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr? My grandmother, the late Lucy Lewis, had gay and lbian iends.
had a clear homosexual nnotatn. Rather than emphasisg the homosexualy of the persons, however,. were fluenced by their own homophobic prejudic to distort.
NATIVE AMERIN YEARNS FOR OLD VIEWS OF GAYS, LBIANS
spoe of two-spir people did not see themselv as "homosexual". In the 20th-century, as homophobic European Christian fluenc.
THE SURPRISG HISTORY OF GAY MARRIAGE THE NAVAJO NATN
power" cultural pri sce the 60s, and the rise of gay. Bee of this tradn of rpect, the 90s many gay and. In class, we briefly discsed homosexualy among Native Amerins and how was tradnally celebrated.
As we know, this mentaly is very different when pared to the lonial whe Amerin homophobia (for Christian reasons, of urse). Personally, I have never unrstood what the hype is about homosexualy. But as we know, many Christians thk homosexualy is a big al; they thk ’s a s, evil, and unnatural.
In sum, I’ve never agreed wh the whe Christian Amerin view of homosexualy.
MORE THAN JT THE “GAY INDIANS”
If anythg, I thk homosexualy is ol: a viewpot siar to many Native Amerin trib. The “Berdache” (Native Amerin homosexuals) were thought to live “outsi the world” and be of “two spirs”.
In fact, homosexualy was enuraged to the pot where was nsired normal for men to have gay sex, even if they weren’t actually homosexual.
And if the wiv of men were homosexuals or had affairs wh the same sex, the hbands were nsired highly honorable.