I want to preface this with what I have prefaced most of my comments during the Gathering with. I don’t believe in rights and wrongs. I believe in truths. There is my truth, your truth, her truth, their truth, his truth, and all of them are true. I believe that many truths can exist simultaneously and that none is better or worse than the other.
Now while this is what I believe sometimes it can be hard to act in a way that upholds that belief. Because of course I sometimes feel like my truth is better, because it’s mine.
Here’s a bit of my truth:
I was invited, on the last evening of the gathering to participate in a women’s sharing circle. I had also just signed up for the women’s sweat the following day. During the talking circle it came up that the women’s sweat was for people who had been born women only and that the talking circle I was in had the same policy.
Immediately I could feel my body react. My arms tensed, my feet wouldn’t stop fidgeting, I was upset. Even typing this I can feel it coming back. So I’m sorry if this comes out emotional and hard to read.
I understand the need for women only spaces. I haven’t always but I now see the value in women’s circles. The problem I have is with saying gender is defined by our bodies. I think people don’t realize just how exclusive this is. I have several questions and points I want to make.
First-if our bodies are what makes our gender, what body part is it? Breasts? Vulva? Uterus? What then of women with breast cancer who have their breasts removed? Are they less of a woman? What about women who have hysterectomies? What about survivors of genital mutilation?
Second-What about our intersex brothers and sisters who’s genitalia may not appear traditionally male or female? Does that mean they are not allowed in gendered spaces of either gender?
Third-THIS IS A TWO SPIRIT GATHERING!!! WTF?! OMGZ! BLARGH!!!!
I refuse to believe that our bodies define our gender. I just find it so hard to believe that in a gathering of people with the shared experience of being Two Spirit that anyone would try to exclude our sisters in this way.

I heard women also saying they just felt overshadowed. That the event was very male dominated and they wanted some space to gather as women. Cool, i’m into it. I noticed there was a lack of women, trans men, and youth at the event too.

I just feel that of all places, a Two Spirit Gathering, where most of us are used to being excluded, of being discriminated against, why would we discriminate against our sisters? We’re talking about reclaiming our place in the circle. Can’t we see the other gaps? The circle can’t be complete until every person, every single person, has their place in the circle honoured.

-Jasmine

hey y’all its Joseph aka Joeena blogging live from Two Spirit Gathering 22nd Annual in Manitoba, its is soo awesome being here and meeting new friends and seeing and hanging with some ol buddies, i did my very first dragg perfomrance in from the crowd, happening, dancing and lip singing to “stupid cupid ” hey hey,,,it was a first timer blast and my stage name alter ego was “Juicy Joeena” happening this girl” from Ginoogaming First Nation

Hey Everyone,

I can’t believe how much has happened since yesterday! I woke up late this morning (oops!) but it turned out that the workshop for the youth didn’t start until a lot later- it was supposed to start at 8am, but not enough people came out that early. But, eventually the workshop started and it was AMAZING! The youth really got a chance to show their skills during the workshop. During the discussion it was also really intense, but the conversations were ones that really needed to be had during this weekend. After the discussion a few people drummed some really amazing songs and you could just feel the air clear in the area.

Afterwards there was a drum making session for women and there were also some sweat lodges that happened. I decided to just hangout for this afternoon and chill, which was really nice. The whole property is so beautiful, being right near a river. Then this evening there was an amazing ‘no talent show’ which there were so many awesome performances. Its so great to be here, I feel like all I do is laugh and joke around! And there is still a day and a half left!!

-Dana

Heyo! I am so excited to be here and to be blogging to all of you who couldn’t make it. Your presence is missed. I really hope to see more of you here next year. I’m already planning on fundraising to bring a big van of you with me.
Ok, so my name is Jasmine Redfern, I’m a 22 year old Two Spirit Inuk from Iqaluit, NU but living and working in Vancouver, BC. There, now we’re all introduced.
It’s my first time at this gathering and I really didn’t know what to expect but so far I am well impressed. It’s smaller than I was expecting but people have been arriving pretty steadily with about 15 youth so far. When I first arrived at the Winnipeg airport I called to find out about the van that was picking people up. In my nervousness and excitement I maaay have said I arrived 3 hours later than I actually did. Oops.
When I got here, I felt more welcome than I have in years. I walked into a big room of people laughing and playing and sharing and there was candy and cookies and veggie wraps and salmon wraps and fruit and did I already say cookies? I have never been won over by a crowd so quickly. Everyone here is so friendly. Why wouldn’t they be? I think we all have communities we’re coming from, our home communities, queer communities, social justice communities, etc, but not many of us have two spirit communities. It feels like walking into home.
I was super tired from all the traveling so I slept in and missed the sunrise ceremony but woke up in time for the lighting of the sacred fire. I have no idea what the sunrise ceremony includes but I will find out tomorrow at 6:30am. The sacred fire is a fire we are all entrusted with keeping all weekend. It opened our weekend and it will close our weekend. I was so honoured that I was asked to represent one of the four directions in the ceremony. I can’t wait for my shift to tend to the fire. It feels so good to be given this kind of responsibility.
After the lighting of the fire we all hung around the crafts table. Ooh yeah there’s a crafts table, how cool is that? So we all made friendship bracelets with Shaneequa’s help and guidance. And yes I’m talking about Shaneequa of the Healthy Sexuality and Fighting Homophobia: Native Youth Photography Project Fame (Check it out HERE).
I realized I’d forgotten pegs for my tent. >_< and socks. And toothpaste. The tent part is a little devastating. For weeks I’ve been talking about two spirit camping. Now I’m going to be in one of the lodges. Note to everyone next year look at the packing list and follow it days before coming. Not 20 minutes before you have to leave to get to the airport.
After lunch Dana and I were invited to pick cedar with two of the other gathering participants. Can I just say bright pink pick up truck? So Robert a local two spirited man at the gathering has one. He is now my idol. It was amazing to pick cedar with them. We offered tobacco to the trees and harvested from a fallen tree. We could not have seemed more urban with our runners and constant debate over what was and wasn’t poison ivy. It was, however, very relaxing. I had some amazing talks with Dana about politics, gender, coming out, safety, and so much more. This girl is amazing. Everyone here is amazing and I feel so inspired. I can’t wait to get to know everyone.
I feel so impatient trying to write this because nothing I say is describing how awesome this is. I keep thinking of all these amazing things that happen and when I go to write them the details are lost because it’s not the events that were so important per se but how they all make you feel. Also I just ate a <b>mountain</b> of dinner and my brain is getting fuzzy.
I can’t wait to tell you more. Tomorrow we’re doing a youth panel all talk show style about our experiences as two spirit youth. I feel like a giddy school girl writing to my diary. This weird. Maybe I’ll be more comfortable and coherent. <i>Maybe</i>.

-Jasmine

Waachyay everyone!!

I flew into Manitoba yesterday from Toronto, ON and now I’m completely exhausted! I had taken a bus in from Kingston, ON that left at 6am and got into Toronto around 10am. I hung out in the airport in Toronto for a while, drinking lots of coffee. I was really super nervous about coming to the gathering, I really didn’t know what to expect. Though, I thought maybe that there was going to be a lot of really formal people and I was afraid that I wouldn’t fit in. I couldn’t have been more wrong!

I arrived in the airport and met up with two other really cool people and we had coffee waiting for Gayle to come pick us up and bring up to the centre (which is about 1hr out of Winnipeg). In talking with them, I discovered that I was cousins with one of them!!!! I had never met them before, but we realized that we had the same uncle! It was truly amazing. I always knew I had a big family, with lots of relatives, but I never knew I had relatives living so far south in the US (although, we are all related in some way, all my relations!). So right from that moment, I started to feel like it was meant to be that I came to the gathering. The Creator must have guided me here for a reason.

So, when we arrived, we hung out a little in the main lodge of the centre because it was raining and met some new folks. Everyone is so incredibly nice and totally hilarious, that I just stopped being nervous! Afterwards, totally exhausted, we hit the sack.

This morning, I was so tired that I slept right through the sunrise ceremony at 6:30am, but I am really excited to go to the one tomorrow morning. I did make it to breakfast though, which was delicious. Many thanks to everyone who makes the food and is organizing this gathering.
After that, we all got together and made some friendship bracelets as people prepared for the Teepee Workshop which was followed by the opening ceremony where we all introduced ourselves. During the day, myself and a few other people went out to pick medicine for the floor of the sweat lodges. My hands still smell like cedar!

Right now we are waiting for the line for supper to get a little shorter before we eat. It smells so good! That’s all for now, so excited for tomorrow! We will keep you updated on all the activities.

- Dana