By Geordy Joseph Marshall • Eskasoni, NS • 2019-06-05
Gender Pronouns are very important to people in the LGBTQ2+ Community. I remember, as a kid, someone would ask me, "Are you a boy or a girl?" And I was really offended. What offended me was the question and ignorance.
Today I’m far more accepting of my sexuality and gender roles where as questions like that doesn’t affect me any longer, even though I don’t get asked that question anymore lol.
My pronouns are: he/him or she/her.
As Two Spirit I’m not offended when someone calls me she or her, it’s actually a compliment in my eyes, because it’s honouring the powerful feminine aspect of myself, which is a way I honour all the beautiful and powerful women who took part in raising me all my life.
Being Two Spirit is not a literal term, it’s more of a metaphorical term. I don’t believe I have two spirits. It’s deeper than that, Two Spirit means like having two spirits, one of a man and one of a woman.
As a person who understands the balance of masculine and feminine, it is my duty to use each one when needed, when masculine roles are needed I’ll be able to help and fulfil the male roles in my family, and if the feminine roles are needed then I’d be able to fulfil those roles as well in my family. As indigenous it’s about nurturing and providing, educating and protecting.
This month is Pride Month and I want to provide you with as much information I can on the LGBTQ2+ community, so we can better understand each another. When we are educated on these topics and you are questioning your own gender and sexuality, then an understanding of what everything is, is very important in the process of figuring out who you are and what you want.
Who can be 2 Spirit?
It is an indigenous concept of gender and sexuality, and how the fluidity is within it (although some may disagree with me.) But if you're indigenous, however you identify in the LGBTQ2+ community, you can identify as 2 Spirit, wether you’re transgender, gay, lesbian, bisexual, non binary, queer, intersex, pansexual, asexual, and the list goes on, which is why we use the +
So if you’re a heterosexual Ally, and you’ve read this I want to thank you and acknowledge you, if you can leave a heart comment, so those in the LGBTQ2S+ community would know who their Allies are.
Also, for the Allies, in the spirit of pride month, I challenge you to look up one or all of the terms of gender and sexuality stated above, just so you could expand your knowledge as well!!
Again wela’lioq if you made it this far in the read! ❤️
