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Southern Cheyenne Marlon Fixico Helps Us Understand The Native American TWO SPIRIT (LGBTQ) People
1866 Navajo couple from the collection of the Museum of New Mexico
Photo provided by Marlon (Marty) Fixico
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Southern Cheyenne Marlon Fixico Helps Us Understand The Native American TWO SPIRIT (LGBTQ) People
By Steven Skelley & Thomas Routzong Most people probably do not know that Native American / Indigenous communities welcomed and honored LGBTQ people for centuries before Europeans forced bigotry and religious persecution upon them. We asked Southern Cheyenne Marlon Fixico to help us understand the Native American TWO SPIRIT (LGBTQ) people and the history that genocidal conquerors nearly destroyed. |
Can you tell us about yourself and your background?
My name is Marlon Fixico, aka Marty. I’m 61 yrs old and born and raised in Oklahoma. I am an enrolled member of the Southern Cheyenne by way of the Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma.
I am equally at home in an urban or rural setting. I was raised in both indigenous traditional ways and in the fundamentalist Christian traditions. I spent close to 30 years living in Washington DC but now live in rural Idaho near the Shoshone-Bannock Reservation with my children and grandchildren.
My ex-wife is a Shoshone-Bannock tribal member along with our children and grandchildren.
I have been involved with LGBT Indigenous and Two Spirit organizations since 1983. Presently I am working with the International Council of Two Spirit Societies organized in 2015.
Europeans and their religious descendants have struggled with gay / LGBTQ acceptance for centuries. Will you explain to us Native American TWO SPIRIT history?
The best information resource on Two Spirit History is from author Will Roscoe. He has done extensive research and published several books on traditional teachings and historical persons who lived extra-male/female roles within tribal societies.
In a summary, tribes who still have stories passed down of pre-colonial contact have histories of persons who took on well-accepted traditional roles within the tribal societies that were not strictly male or female oriented. I use the word “roles” because it best describes how Two Spirit persons were part of their tribal societies.
Our identities were not about who we had sex with as much as it was about the duties we took on to best serve the tribe. Each of us have unique gifts and many with spiritual insights that we are able to use to contribute to the well-being of our people.
How are TWO SPIRIT peoples accepted / treated today within Native American communities?
With the invasion of European imperialists and their failed genocidal policies, eventually attention turned to destroying our traditional mindset towards sexuality and spirituality and forced adoption of Christian fundamentalism. All this led, among other things, to the forgotten value of and prejudice against those born with extra-male/female identities, now called Two Spirit people.
In 1975 was the beginning of the re-establishment of the Two Spirit identity when the first gay native organization formed in San Francisco, Gay American Indians. Up until late 70’s and early 80’s we were called Berdache by anthropological academia.
In fact, one book was published that stated that all the Berdache no longer existed in tribal societies. The GAI group began voicing their objections to 1. that we no longer existed and 2. the descriptor Berdache by anthropologists. The origin of the word Berdache is Persian via Latin which refers to a kept boy for sexual purposes. In Latin, it referred to boy prostitutes. (Merriam-Webster definition of berdache - sometimes offensive - an American Indian who assumes the dress, social status, and role of the opposite sex.)
The 1987 gay rights March on Washington brought together several indigenous gay leaders from across the US and out of that was decided to hold the first LGBT Indian gathering in Minneapolis in 1988.
The search had begun for a unifying umbrella name for LGBT indigenous people. Tribes who recognize the historical roles to Two Spirit people (some deny the existence of other-gendered people) have specific tribal names, Navajo-nadhle; Cheyenne-hemaneh; Crow-bode’; etc. Most of these names translate to some form of concept of “man-woman” or vice versa.
In 1989 at the 2nd LGBT Indian Gathering the Two Spirit was formally adopted denoting the embodiment of various blending of male and female spirits within one body. Please note that the Navajo object to the Two Spirit concept because in their language it translates as insane.
Because of the hard work since 1975, there is a resurgence of acceptance and honoring of Two Spirit people among a significant minority of tribes and that number continues to grow.
Presently there are approximately 40 Two Spirit / LGBTQ Native organizations across the US and Canada. One primary goals of the groups is the recognition and reintegration of Two Spirit people by the local tribes.
This is the basis for effecting the extremely high suicide rate among indigenous populations. Although data is difficult to gather on Two Spirit specific statistics, we believe Two Spirit people make up a significant number of suicides.
Is anyone working toward the bonding of Native American TWO SPIRIT people and LGBTQ people?
There are some individuals that have done some work but honestly, most LGBTQ organizations/people have treated Two Spirit as novelties at best and invisible at worst.
Two Spirit people are more concerned with creating safe spaces for our people and stopping the suicides.
What can European descendants like me do to better understand Native American history, culture and beauty?
The best and simplest way is to reach out to someone who is Two Spirit and get to know them as a friend.
Another way to support Two Spirit people is by including them or giving them a place at the table when planning public events for LGBTQ events.
Since we are primarily an LGBTQ travel publication, are there travel opportunities where we can learn Native American history, culture and beauty?
The San Francisco based Two Spirit group called Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits, or BAAITS for short, hosts an annual Two Spirit single-day powwow in early Feb of each year. It’s a nice venue that’s open to the public.
There are still on-going 3 or 4-day Two Spirit gatherings is various regions of US & Canada at various times of the year but they are specifically open for Two Spirit people. Non-indigenous and allies who on not LGBT are welcome to participate but they have to have a Two Spirit sponsor attending with them.
Our 31st Annual International Two Spirit Gathering is presently going on in Manitoba (Aug 3-6).
Conclusion
Whether we identify ourselves as Two Spirit, queer, lesbian, trans, gay or LGBTQ, our people have contributed to the betterment of our communities since the beginning of time. We were accepted and valued in Native American / Indigenous communities. We were shunned, tortured, imprisoned and murdered in other societies around the world. Even though we have come a long way toward equality, there are still those promoting hatred toward us today. We believe it is time for all LGBTQ, TWO SPIRIT and our allies to stand together as one and in support of all.
- Steven Skelley
The Legacy Project lists the following links to TWO SPIRIT resources:
Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (San Francisco, CA)
www.baaits.org/
Indigenous Peoples Task Force (Minneapolis, MN)
www.indigenouspeoplestf.org
Montana Two-Spirit Society (Browning, MT)
www.mttwospirit.org
Nations of the 4 Directions (San Diego, CA)
www.notfd.blogspot.com
NativeOUT (Phoenix, AZ)
www.nativeout.com
NorthEast Two-Spirit Society (New York, NY)
www.ne2ss.org
Northwest Two-Spirit Society (Seattle, WA)
www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Northwest-Two-Spirit-Society/109628619087104
Red Circle Project (Los Angeles, CA)
www.facebook.com/redcircleproject
Two-Spirit Society of Denver (Denver, CO)
www.denvertwospirit.com
Tulsa Two-Spirit Society (Tulsa, OK)
www.denvertwospirit.com/tulsa
CANADA
2Spirits of Toronto
www.2spirits.com
Edmonton Two-Spirit Society
www.facebook.com/groups/21049870433/
Regina Two-Spirited Society
www.facebook.com/groups/4787165687/
McGill University Project
www.mcgill.ca/interaction/mission/twospirit/
My name is Marlon Fixico, aka Marty. I’m 61 yrs old and born and raised in Oklahoma. I am an enrolled member of the Southern Cheyenne by way of the Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma.
I am equally at home in an urban or rural setting. I was raised in both indigenous traditional ways and in the fundamentalist Christian traditions. I spent close to 30 years living in Washington DC but now live in rural Idaho near the Shoshone-Bannock Reservation with my children and grandchildren.
My ex-wife is a Shoshone-Bannock tribal member along with our children and grandchildren.
I have been involved with LGBT Indigenous and Two Spirit organizations since 1983. Presently I am working with the International Council of Two Spirit Societies organized in 2015.
Europeans and their religious descendants have struggled with gay / LGBTQ acceptance for centuries. Will you explain to us Native American TWO SPIRIT history?
The best information resource on Two Spirit History is from author Will Roscoe. He has done extensive research and published several books on traditional teachings and historical persons who lived extra-male/female roles within tribal societies.
In a summary, tribes who still have stories passed down of pre-colonial contact have histories of persons who took on well-accepted traditional roles within the tribal societies that were not strictly male or female oriented. I use the word “roles” because it best describes how Two Spirit persons were part of their tribal societies.
Our identities were not about who we had sex with as much as it was about the duties we took on to best serve the tribe. Each of us have unique gifts and many with spiritual insights that we are able to use to contribute to the well-being of our people.
How are TWO SPIRIT peoples accepted / treated today within Native American communities?
With the invasion of European imperialists and their failed genocidal policies, eventually attention turned to destroying our traditional mindset towards sexuality and spirituality and forced adoption of Christian fundamentalism. All this led, among other things, to the forgotten value of and prejudice against those born with extra-male/female identities, now called Two Spirit people.
In 1975 was the beginning of the re-establishment of the Two Spirit identity when the first gay native organization formed in San Francisco, Gay American Indians. Up until late 70’s and early 80’s we were called Berdache by anthropological academia.
In fact, one book was published that stated that all the Berdache no longer existed in tribal societies. The GAI group began voicing their objections to 1. that we no longer existed and 2. the descriptor Berdache by anthropologists. The origin of the word Berdache is Persian via Latin which refers to a kept boy for sexual purposes. In Latin, it referred to boy prostitutes. (Merriam-Webster definition of berdache - sometimes offensive - an American Indian who assumes the dress, social status, and role of the opposite sex.)
The 1987 gay rights March on Washington brought together several indigenous gay leaders from across the US and out of that was decided to hold the first LGBT Indian gathering in Minneapolis in 1988.
The search had begun for a unifying umbrella name for LGBT indigenous people. Tribes who recognize the historical roles to Two Spirit people (some deny the existence of other-gendered people) have specific tribal names, Navajo-nadhle; Cheyenne-hemaneh; Crow-bode’; etc. Most of these names translate to some form of concept of “man-woman” or vice versa.
In 1989 at the 2nd LGBT Indian Gathering the Two Spirit was formally adopted denoting the embodiment of various blending of male and female spirits within one body. Please note that the Navajo object to the Two Spirit concept because in their language it translates as insane.
Because of the hard work since 1975, there is a resurgence of acceptance and honoring of Two Spirit people among a significant minority of tribes and that number continues to grow.
Presently there are approximately 40 Two Spirit / LGBTQ Native organizations across the US and Canada. One primary goals of the groups is the recognition and reintegration of Two Spirit people by the local tribes.
This is the basis for effecting the extremely high suicide rate among indigenous populations. Although data is difficult to gather on Two Spirit specific statistics, we believe Two Spirit people make up a significant number of suicides.
Is anyone working toward the bonding of Native American TWO SPIRIT people and LGBTQ people?
There are some individuals that have done some work but honestly, most LGBTQ organizations/people have treated Two Spirit as novelties at best and invisible at worst.
Two Spirit people are more concerned with creating safe spaces for our people and stopping the suicides.
What can European descendants like me do to better understand Native American history, culture and beauty?
The best and simplest way is to reach out to someone who is Two Spirit and get to know them as a friend.
Another way to support Two Spirit people is by including them or giving them a place at the table when planning public events for LGBTQ events.
Since we are primarily an LGBTQ travel publication, are there travel opportunities where we can learn Native American history, culture and beauty?
The San Francisco based Two Spirit group called Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits, or BAAITS for short, hosts an annual Two Spirit single-day powwow in early Feb of each year. It’s a nice venue that’s open to the public.
There are still on-going 3 or 4-day Two Spirit gatherings is various regions of US & Canada at various times of the year but they are specifically open for Two Spirit people. Non-indigenous and allies who on not LGBT are welcome to participate but they have to have a Two Spirit sponsor attending with them.
Our 31st Annual International Two Spirit Gathering is presently going on in Manitoba (Aug 3-6).
Conclusion
Whether we identify ourselves as Two Spirit, queer, lesbian, trans, gay or LGBTQ, our people have contributed to the betterment of our communities since the beginning of time. We were accepted and valued in Native American / Indigenous communities. We were shunned, tortured, imprisoned and murdered in other societies around the world. Even though we have come a long way toward equality, there are still those promoting hatred toward us today. We believe it is time for all LGBTQ, TWO SPIRIT and our allies to stand together as one and in support of all.
- Steven Skelley
The Legacy Project lists the following links to TWO SPIRIT resources:
Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (San Francisco, CA)
www.baaits.org/
Indigenous Peoples Task Force (Minneapolis, MN)
www.indigenouspeoplestf.org
Montana Two-Spirit Society (Browning, MT)
www.mttwospirit.org
Nations of the 4 Directions (San Diego, CA)
www.notfd.blogspot.com
NativeOUT (Phoenix, AZ)
www.nativeout.com
NorthEast Two-Spirit Society (New York, NY)
www.ne2ss.org
Northwest Two-Spirit Society (Seattle, WA)
www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Northwest-Two-Spirit-Society/109628619087104
Red Circle Project (Los Angeles, CA)
www.facebook.com/redcircleproject
Two-Spirit Society of Denver (Denver, CO)
www.denvertwospirit.com
Tulsa Two-Spirit Society (Tulsa, OK)
www.denvertwospirit.com/tulsa
CANADA
2Spirits of Toronto
www.2spirits.com
Edmonton Two-Spirit Society
www.facebook.com/groups/21049870433/
Regina Two-Spirited Society
www.facebook.com/groups/4787165687/
McGill University Project
www.mcgill.ca/interaction/mission/twospirit/
Article by Steven Skelley and Thomas Routzong
Copyright 2018 Sunny Harbor Publishing Sunny Harbor Publishing, PO Box 560318, Rockledge, FL 32956 Phone: 321-252-9874 Email: [email protected] Website: www.SunnyHarborPublishing.org |
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