Niizh Manidoowag by Ryan Young

Issue 138

Two Spirit became an umbrella term adopted from the Indigenous Lesbian and Gay International gathering, translated from the Ojibwe term (Niizh Manidoowag). By definition, it means an Indigenous/First Nations individual who embodies both the masculine and feminine spirit. Niizh Manidoowag is a body of work created with various mediums to help queer Indigenous/Two Spirit people find pride in their identity in a world still under the influence of colonization. With these bodies of works I want to rebuild the cultural recognition that many tribes had with multiple gender identities. As someone who grew up with almost no representation or resources about Two Spirit people, I felt alone. After learning about Two Spirit identity and its own place within Ojibwe culture, I focused on work that centers Two Spirit people as my target audience and in representation.

Every room I walk into becomes a Queer space, becomes an Indigenous space, becomes a Two Spirit space. Whether we are in spaces created for us, or alone in new spaces, we bring representation, reclamation, and power.

Ryan Young is from the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe reservation in northern Wisconsin and currently lives and works in Santa Fe, NM.
To view more of Ryan’s work, please visit their website or find them on Instagram @indigenousvengeance