Love Beyond Body, Space & Time

I had just finished an anthology of poems by an indigenous author and was in the mood for more poetry. I had this book open and a poetry book. I picked this book up thinking it was the other poetry book and expected poetry. With that said... it's not a book of poetry although there is one at the end.

This is not an anthology of poems but it was absolutely poetic. I found myself grateful for and fascinated by the way the authors explained LGBTQ and two spirit via their short stories. I walked away understanding so much more and truly finding two spirit so beautiful.

My favorite stories were Imposter Syndrome by Mari Kurisato, and * Aliens by Richad Van Camp.Absolute Favorite*




Quotes taken from the introduction of the stories:

“Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit peoples gifted their communities some of the greatest expressions of relationship making, carrying knowledge and experience on how to form ties using the body, spirit, and other parts of life. Fueled often by a love for land, community and the forces in the universe, sex was only a form of exchange for Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit peoples—and definitely not the only one. In the songs, words, and stories of Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit community members, notions of responsibility, generosity, and intellectual production forming the foundation of Indigenous communities could be found. To do this, Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit artists not only became knowledge-makers in their community's cultural, political, and ideological frameworks, but in scientific discourses. They illustrated that, to form relationships with the world, one must understand all of it, using all the ways. Lastly—and really not needing to be said—Indigenous LGBTQ and two-spirit traditions continue today.” –Returning To Ourselves: Two Spirit Futures and the Now by Niigaan Sinclair

“ “... what we would now classify as homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia were clearly introduced by European settlers, founded in and encourage by the state-sanctioned Christian religion and enforced through the criminal laws of the state.
The introduction of what we now characterize as homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia can be directly related to the systematic dismantling of Aboriginal culture by European colonizers and Canada that has been appropriately characterizes as “cultural genocide.”

The notion that such gender and sexual non-conforming behaviour was sinful, criminal, or symptomatic of disease was entirely unknown among Aboriginal Peoples prior to Contact. Prior to Contact, the region of North America now known as Canada was relatively free of these destructive negative social attitudes. “ –The Just Society Report: Grossly Indecent: Confronting the Legacy of State Sponsored Discrimination Against Canada's LGBTQ2SI Communities —Returning To Ourselves: Two Spirit Futures and the Now by Niigaan Sinclair

I enjoyed this anthology. My favorite story by far is “Imposter Syndrome” by Mari Kurisato, followed by “Aliens” by Richard Van Camp and “The Boys Who Became Hummingbirds” by Daniel Heath Justice. I'm excited to now have these new-to-me-authors on my radar.