A massive step in the visibility and celebration of the Two-Spirt community was made in Winnipeg, MB, this week with the unveiling of the first Two-Spirit Pride flag, a Two-Spirit documentary, and a Two-Spirit curriculum for educators, students, and community groups to explore the commonly used pan-Indigenous concept that reflects the diverse gender identities, roles, and spiritual significance recognized within many Indigenous cultures across North America.

It was fitting the announcement was made in Winnipeg, where the term was first coined almost 35 years ago at the annual Intertribal Native American/First Nations Gay and Lesbian Conference. 

In the current political climate, where diverse experiences and identities are being questioned and attacked, Day of Pink pushes against these narratives, inviting community members, students, and educators to this momentous Event to learn about 2SLGBTQIA+ activists, to become a part of Reconciliation, to embrace themselves and their identities, and how to become advocates for human rights.

Prominent themes expressed were the reclamation of identity from colonial influence, embracing oneself, and placing footprints and paths for the next generation to follow, a point emphasized by Elder Charlotte Nolin, who, upon hearing about the term Two-Spirit embraced it, and since that moment, has lived proudly as a trans-woman and Two-Sprit. Elder Nolin is an Elder in Residence at Ongomiizwin, the Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing at the University of Manitoba. She is a proud Indigenous of Métis ancestry with Oji-Cree and French heritage.

“I’ve walked that way since, that this is who I am. The liberation that gave me to recognize who I truly was. I was travelling back from our Sundance grounds two years ago, and  I had a friend with me in the truck. As we got to the city limits, I was told, this is what you’re here on Mother Earth for. This is what you have to do. You have to leave footprints behind that others will choose to follow. For me, that made so much sense that it guided every footstep that I took to ensure that our children and our youth would follow in those footsteps.”

Re-Emergence, the short documentary on Two-Spirit identity, features Elder Charlotte Nolin and a diverse group of artists, advocates, and Elders who came together to share their stories. Stories of fighting and advocating for their and others’ human rights, the building of community, and the beauty of learning about who they were both in their gender identities and Indigeneity.

Filmed in Winnipeg, the documentary featured the voices and stories of Elder Charlotte Nolin, Elder Barbara Bruce, Vida Lamour, Brielle Beardy-Linklater, Sage Broomfield, Waaseyaa Haze, Anita Stallion, and Feather Talia.

For the participants of the film, the unveiling of the documentary, Two-Spirit Pride flag, and curriculum are long overdue for people who have been around long before the term Two-Spirit was ever created. For Elder Nolin, embracing a culture and language that has been oppressed by colonization is an important part of building a new future. The word Tastawiniyew, “those who walk in-between the two worlds,” is important to her, embracing the unique aspect of being Two-Spirit, walking both in the physical and spiritual world, often encompassing people who embody both masculine and feminine spirits, a cultural blessing.

Vida Lamour, a leader in Winnipeg’s drag scene for nearly 25 years and co-founder of the Bannock Babes, is proud to be a part of Re-Emergence and the visibility and awareness it brings to the conversation of what it means to be queer, Indigenous, and Two-Spirit. 

“I’ve always been on the fence about gender and always been confused about gender. I think that when I came out into the queer community and started doing drag, there wasn’t really much representation of Indigenous people, let alone two-spirit people. So I think it’s important that these conversations are happening because now, like, there’s a community for you to belong to.”

For Feather Talia, the other co-founder of Bannock Babies and mother of the House of Wolves, celebrating this moment affirms the importance of acknowledging and amplifying Two-Spirit voices in the journey toward Reconciliation.

“We should all give props to the people that have been doing the talking and have been putting on these events because they’re happening across Turtle Island. Yet I don’t think people get to see it as often as it is happening because it’s not a conversation people technically want to have. So it’s nice to have as a place where we can even start, having a new flag, having this video being put on, a lot of hard work has been put into this, and it’s a great starting point for even just getting into people to talk about.”

Winnipeg educators Sarah Martins and Holly Cobb were ecstatic that their students had the opportunity to participate in this momentous occasion. 

“They feel special getting to come to a big event,” says Martins, “it’s important for them to see a bunch of people coming together in support of the same thing. Whether they identify with this community or not, to be a part of history, with the new flag being unveiled, and to see themselves represented or the people they care about represented.”

For many years, educators had to look for resources that taught about Two-Spirt history and identity. The free education tools provided by Day of Pink are highly welcomed, explains Martins and Cobb. 

“It’s really needed because, just last year, I was looking for resources to teach about Two-Spirit, and I had a hard time coming up with relevant things or things for the classroom, explains Martins. I ended up getting in touch with Rainbow Resource Centre, and Dene [Guillas] came in to do sessions. It’s nice to have something like that at our fingertips. There’s only one Dene, so it’s nice to have this.”

However, this highlights the continued need from the Winnipeg school division to develop and offer more tools around diverse communities and the role educators play in creating inclusive and engaging classrooms. 

“Education is what’s going to help us come along,” says Hobbs, “We have to normalize this. These people, as they said, these people have always existed. This has always been a part of our history. There are different people who live here, there are different families, and people in our schools live these lives. So, we have to stop pretending that they don’t exist. Winnipeg schools still need to come a little bit further in making it part of our every day.”

The documentary and curriculum are available free through Day of Pink.

– Ryan Funk, U Multicultural