Letter from the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center
Dear Relatives and Friends,
At NIWRC’s July board meeting, we explored points of tension and areas for growth among us. We delved into the challenging dynamics between gender identity, cultures, and languages.
The Sundance season and other community ceremonies were upon us as we convened. An elder on our board shared the challenges of including our Trans relatives in traditionally gendered ceremonies. While it's not our place to dictate cultural protocols, we agreed on the immense power of our ceremonies, which have held their integrity through generations of colonization and evolved to survive and thrive. Yet, we grappled with the limitations of the English language in expressing Indigenous concepts. For instance, where nature and water are often gendered as she/her in English, they have names in our languages—genderless, innately inclusive, and expansive. This complexity isn't easily conveyed with pronouns or how ceremonies are described in English.
Nothing about our Nations and communities across Indian Country is exclusive. We choose each other, care for each other, and ensure everyone is valued and contributes to the health of the Nation. How do we advance anti-violence efforts against Indigenous women while fostering respect and inclusivity using English?
We explicitly express our support and love for our queer, Trans, and Two-Spirit relatives. We recognize the urgent need for rejuvenated ceremonies and cultures as resilient, proactive measures resulting in respect for everyone in our communities and against gender violence. As our grandmothers, mothers, and aunties before us in this movement, we are committed to a path that prioritizes the safety of our women because when our women are safe, everyone in our communities is safe.
While our board discussion didn't yield definitive answers, it brought us closer as advocates, relatives, and board members. Our transparency around these tensions shows our beloved community nationwide that none of us has all the answers, and we all wrestle with language and cultural complexities. The key takeaway is that we choose each other, embracing all facets of womanhood and gender nonbinary identities. We are interconnected. We are all related. As seasons change, from summer to fall to winter, and we cast our votes in our upcoming elections, let us practice these lessons by caring for each other and ensuring everyone is valued and contributes to the health of our Nations. We are excited to have produced a video on Tillie Black Bear, a founding mother of our movement and NIWRC, which we aired at Tillie’s 10-Year Memorial on October 1st.
“It wasn't until 1974, with the Indian Religious Freedom Act, that we were able to practice these ways without having to get permission. These ways are all attached to us as people as we make this human journey. There is a belief among our people that we live in this world not as humans on a spiritual journey but as spirits on a human journey. As Lakota, we believe that you are a spirit until birth. When you are born into this world, that first human touch is when you become a human being, and so when we leave this world, we go back into the spirit world as a spirit again.”—Tillie Black Bear
In strength and solidarity,
