The Principle of Gender Fluidity in Anishinaabeg Family Law

tansi ninôtemik,

The rates of suicide attempts among 2SLGBTQIA+ youth are confirmed to be much higher than those among cisgender and heterosexual youth.[1] In the 2013 British Columbia Adolescent Health Survey, 65% of transgender youth reported that they had seriously considered suicide; this number is 5 times the rate reported by cisgender youth.[2] 

Egale, a Canadian research institution focusing on 2SLGBTQIA+ people and issues,[3] explains that “Colonial violence created the foundations for the landscape of gender-based violence that we understand today.”[4] The researchers note that Indigenous 2SLGBTQIA+ people, often identifying as Two Spirit, are particularly vulnerable to suicide because of intersections between colonial and gender-based violence.[5] The researchers explain that Indigenous communities have provided tools for the liberation of 2SLGBTQIA+ people.[6]

One tool of liberation is found in Indigenous family law. In a partnership between Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwewag Services Circle and the University of Victoria’s Indigenous Law Research Unit, the Anishinaabeg recorded their legal principles. [7] One of the legal principles for kinship-centred governance is gender fluidity. [8] Through their principle of gender fluidity, the Anishinaabeg people recognize each person’s sovereignty over their body.[9] They also affirm every individual’s ability to identify their own experience and gendered identity.[10] The Anishinaabeg explain that Two-Spirit is a multifaceted term describing various gender expressions.[11] The principle of gender fluidity in Anishinaabeg family law could work to reduce suicide rates and create more supportive environments for gender-diverse Indigenous youth.

In learning about gender fluidity as a principle in Anishinaabeg family law, we reflect on how colonialism has impacted understandings of gender and also gender-based violence. Indigenous law is one legal tool of liberation for 2SLGBTQIA+ Indigenous people. What other Indigenous tools can reduce violence towards 2SLGBTQIA+ people? How can principles of gender fluidity be incorporated into other legal processes? 

ekosi.

The ReconciliACTION Team

Citations

[1] Eagle, Espum, “2SLGBTQI Suicide Prevention Research in Canada: Evidence, Gaps, and Priorities: PHAC Suicide and its Prevention Final Report” (October 2021) at 8, online: <www.bgccan.com> [perma.cc/Z54J-39SU].

[2] Ibid at 9.

[3] Ibid at 2.

[4] Ibid at 3.

[5] Ibid at 13.

[6] Ibid at 2.

[7] Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwewag Services Circle & The Indigenous Law Research Unit, “Nawendiwin: The Art of Being Related Anishinaabeg Kinship-Centred Governance & Family Law” at 7, online (PDF): <ilru.ca> [perma.cc/958P-9ME8].

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid.