Ma-Nee Chacaby talks about Two Spirit identities
Summary
TLDRMa-Nee Chacaby shares her journey as a two-spirit person from her Anishnaabe culture. At a young age, she was told by her grandmother about her dual male and female spirit and the challenges she would face. As she grew, she discovered her own sexuality and the meaning of 'two-spirited' within her community. Her grandmother advised her to explore her spirituality and find her place, emphasizing the importance of listening to her heart and mind. Chacaby reflects on the historical significance and respected roles of two-spirit people in her culture, encouraging others to embrace their identity and look after themselves and others.
Takeaways
- 👶 Ma-Nee Chacaby was identified as a two-spirit person by her grandmother during her early childhood.
- 👗 She felt uncomfortable in traditional female clothing, instinctively knowing she was different.
- 🌈 At the age of ten, Ma-Nee discovered her own sexuality, realizing she was attracted to girls.
- 📚 It was not until she was about sixteen that she fully understood the term 'two-spirit' through her grandmother's teachings.
- 👵 Her grandmother foresaw a challenging life for Ma-Nee due to her two-spirit identity.
- 🏛️ Ma-Nee was advised to explore different churches to find a place where she felt she belonged.
- 📖 Her grandmother encouraged her to learn from various religious teachings, even if just a little, to find personal guidance.
- 🙏 The concept of two spirits within her was explained as having both male and female sides, which would lead to a complex life journey.
- 🔥 Historically, two-spirit people in First Nations communities were respected and had specific roles, such as healers or visionaries.
- 💪 Ma-Nee emphasizes the importance of self-acceptance and looking after oneself and others, regardless of others' opinions.
- 🏳️🌈 She is proud of her identity as a two-spirit person and will not let anyone's judgment change her self-perception.
Q & A
What did Ma-Nee Chacaby's grandmother tell her about being a 'two-spirit' person?
-Ma-Nee Chacaby's grandmother told her that she was a 'two-spirit' person, which meant she had both a male and a female spirit living inside her, and that she would have a hard life because of who she was.
At what age did Ma-Nee Chacaby discover her own sexuality?
-Ma-Nee Chacaby discovered her own sexuality when she was about ten years old.
What did Ma-Nee's grandmother mean by the Anishnaabe word that translates to 'two-spirit'?
-The Anishnaabe word that translates to 'two-spirit' refers to individuals who possess both male and female spirits, and her grandmother used it to explain that Ma-Nee would face challenges in life due to her identity.
What advice did Ma-Nee's grandmother give her regarding her spiritual journey?
-Ma-Nee's grandmother advised her to try different churches to find where she fits in, to take something from each experience, and to listen to her heart, mind, and body to find her true path.
How did Ma-Nee's grandmother describe the role of two-spirit people in the community?
-Ma-Nee's grandmother described two-spirit people as having important roles in the community, such as keeping the fire alive in the village, learning from elders, and potentially becoming medicine persons, healers, or visionaries.
What was the attitude of the First Nations people towards two-spirit individuals according to Ma-Nee's grandmother?
-According to Ma-Nee's grandmother, the First Nations people accepted two-spirit individuals as special people with gifts, and they were not made fun of or shamed.
What message does Ma-Nee Chacaby have for other two-spirit people?
-Ma-Nee Chacaby's message to other two-spirit people is to take care of themselves, look after others, and not let anyone tell them differently about their identity.
How did Ma-Nee Chacaby feel about her identity as a two-spirit person?
-Ma-Nee Chacaby is proud of who she is as a two-spirit person and does not care what others think of her.
What did Ma-Nee's grandmother suggest she do to understand her two-spirit identity?
-Ma-Nee's grandmother suggested that she explore different religious teachings to find her place and to learn from various spiritual sources to understand her two-spirit identity.
What does the term 'two-spirit' signify in the context of the script?
-In the context of the script, 'two-spirit' signifies individuals who embody both male and female spirits and have a unique role and identity within the First Nations community.
Outlines
🏳️🌈 Embracing Two-Spirit Identity
Ma-Nee Chacaby introduces herself and shares her early life experiences as a two-spirit person. Her grandmother first informed her of her identity at the age of four, though she didn't fully understand its meaning until she grew older. Ma-Nee always felt different and had a strong aversion to being dressed in traditional girls' clothing. As she matured, she recognized her own sexuality and identified with the term 'two-spirit,' which her grandmother had mentioned. Her grandmother advised her to explore various religious paths to find her place in the world and to learn from different teachings, emphasizing the importance of listening to her heart, mind, and intuition. Ma-Nee's grandmother also explained the traditional roles and respect given to two-spirit individuals in their community, highlighting their unique responsibilities and the recognition of their special gifts. Ma-Nee concludes by encouraging two-spirit individuals to embrace their identity and to care for themselves and others, expressing her own pride in who she is.
💰 Unwavering Two-Spirit Pride
In this brief paragraph, Ma-Nee Chacaby asserts the value of her two-spirit identity, stating that no amount of money could convince her that she is not a two-spirit person. This statement underscores her unwavering pride and acceptance of her identity, regardless of external influences or temptations.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Two-Spirit
💡Anishnaabemowin
💡Grandmother
💡Sexuality
💡Anishnaabe
💡Spirit Child
💡Hard Life
💡Churches
💡Elders
💡First Nations
💡Resilience
Highlights
Ma-Nee Chacaby introduces herself and her identity as a two-spirit person.
Chacaby's grandmother foresaw a hard life for her due to her two-spirit nature.
Chacaby's early discomfort with traditional female clothing indicated her difference.
Understanding 'two-spirit' came later in life for Chacaby.
Chacaby discovered her own sexuality at the age of ten, realizing she liked girls.
At sixteen, Chacaby inquired about the meaning of 'two-spirit' from her grandmother.
The grandmother's advice to Chacaby was to explore different churches to find where she fits.
Chacaby was told to take what resonates from each church and learn from it.
The concept of two spirits living inside a person was explained by the grandmother.
Chacaby was advised to listen to her heart, mind, and body for guidance.
The grandmother shared the history of two-spirit people within the First Nations.
Two-spirit people were traditionally regarded as special with important roles.
Elders would mentor two-spirit individuals, teaching them their roles in society.
Two-spirit people were expected to learn everything others learned and fulfill specific duties.
Chacaby emphasizes the importance of self-care and looking after others as a two-spirit person.
Chacaby's message of pride and acceptance of her two-spirit identity.
Transcripts
Ma-Nee Chacaby (intro in Anishnaabemowin)
My name is Ma-Nee Chacaby. When I was born, and I was about four years old, my grandmother told me
I was a two-spirit person, child.
I was to a spirit child and that I had... I was gonna have a hard life when I grow up.
But I didn't know what that meant.
I never knew what 'Two Spirit' meant. Just even that word, until I got older and older
but I knew I was different and
When they tried to dress me up in a little girl clothes, I couldn't stand the little girl clothes. Nobody told me that,
I just didn't want to be one of those people... once I got older and I understood what two-spirit people was
I thought to myself, holy cow,
how am I gonna ever overcome that? I was about ten years old when I discovered my own sexuality
I liked girls
But then when I was about sixteen, when I asked, just before I was sixteen, I asked my grandmother
What did she mean by (word in Anishnaabe language)
And that's 'two spirited'. Two spirit itself didn't come till later for me
But (Anishnaabe word) came early because I knew what that meant
So I asked my grandmother what that what does that mean for me? And she told me oh my granddaughter
Yeah, I think you're gonna have a hard life. I don't know what's gonna happen to you, she said.
Yeah, because of your life because of who you are
People are so different now things are happening things are coming in here
You could see that, she said. And you're gonna have to try all kinds of churches if you want
She says, if you want to do that, just to see where you fit in, if you don't fit, you know,
at least you tried.
And she said, and it won't hurt you to go there if you go to church once
just discover something take one or line or two lines from it and learn from it, she said.
The god's in here. She lives inside of you
or he lives inside of you, she said. And that's who you are, she said.
(Anishnaabe word), you have two of them that lives inside of you, a male side and a female side,
and you're gonna have a hard life, and you have to
listen to your heart and your mind, and your tummy. When all that comes together
But true road is your journey, she said. You're born with two spirits
and you will know when you're born with that, because you'll know when you're born, when you'll know you're different
That's when you know who you really are
And one of the things you can do is ignore it and not pay attention to it
Or you can just start accepting that part of you and start learning from it
And then being two-spirit
it's
We were born that way
I mean way back like my grandmother used to say way back seven generations after seven generations. She's been told that
two-spirit people
exist with
The First Nations people and they did not say, 'Oh, you two, you're living together, shame on you'
they didn't say that, she said, they loved each other and
and the rules of two-spirit people had rules.
Their rules was never to let the fire go out in the village and then the other the other one was
To learn things from the other elders. Elders would take on
take on the two-spirit person, and teach them how to be in this,
what what they should learn about which one is going to be a medicine person, which one's going to be a healer
which one I was going to be the one, the visionary person, and
then which one was going to be the one that's bringing messages from the great spirit when they go out and they're
back to mother's womb and stuff like that. And also just
those were our jobs. We were supposed to learn everything
What other people were learning.
And our duties was to do those things and then they were regarded, you know, very
highly before. They were, they they were accepted as special people
With gifts. And they didn't make fun of them,
because some of them would be the parents of the
kids that was, didn't have no parents.
So
my message to all the two-spirit people or the ones I feel like they are. Your job
is to look after yourself and then look after other people and don't let anybody tell you different.
I don't let anybody tell me that anymore.
I don't let anybody tell me...
I'm proud of who I am. I don't care what they think of me.
The no million dollars is gonna convince me I'm not a two-spirit person.
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