Two-Spirit wacipi connects Indigenous people to heritage in Sioux Falls

When Dylan Daniels thinks about his journey up to today as a queer, Two-Spirit transgender man, he nearly tears up. He never saw his identity represented growing up. But today, he plays a crucial role in organizing the Sioux Falls Two Spirit Wacipi, a powwow that blends traditional dancing with 2SLGBTQ+ representation.

And in its second year, on a Saturday where the clouds threatened to rain over the event but didn't, Daniels was ecstatic to see the event grow to welcome at least 100 attendees at Elmwood Park.

"We have a lot of people that grew up dancing since maybe the time they could walk, and maybe they're, you know, Two-Spirit or queer … but never saw that represented in their communities," Daniels told the Argus Leader. "Here, they get to bring the entirety of themselves into a single space, and just being able to integrate all these aspects of ourselves is what's really healing."

Two-Spirit is a contemporary term typically used to describe an Indigenous person who feels connected to a male and female spirit and may fall under an alternative third or fourth gender, varying by tribe, explained April Matson, Daniels' partner and co-organizer.

Indigenous people didn't view themselves as falling under a strict gender binary before America was colonized, Matson added, and the term "Two-Spirit" was coined by Canadian Indigenous activists to connect LGBTQ+ Native Americans to a historical, fluid gender identity.

At the event, dancers from South Dakota and abroad, dressed in handmade regalia that took years to assemble, performed their traditional stomp and stationary dances, at times carrying one of many 2SLGBTQ+ flags and at other times surrounded by them.

For Brailynn Blevins, a 9-year-old from Jay, Oklahoma, taking part in the wacipi means she gets a whole hair, make-up and style department to herself. In other words, her dad, Wade Blevins, gets to worry about making sure the talent is outfitted and ready to perform.

"I have a buckskin skirt on and a cloth shirt. It's not so much … I have my hair ties, my belt, my necklace ― don't mind the glasses," Brailynn said.

She hands Dad a pair of peach-colored aviators she borrowed from him that, although cool, aren't a part of her get-up.

The Two-Spirit wacipi, while fun for his daughter, is also an important opportunity to connect with her family's diverse Cherokee heritage, Blevins said.

"Especially in an event like this, I think it's really important for her to not only be a part of her culture, but also see the diversity and inclusion our traditional culture has always preached," Blevins said. "It's really important for her to be around different kinds of people and be exposed to different ways."

Ronald Blackman, a 29-year-old dancer from Sioux Falls, is raising teenage boys he said are "kind of discovering themselves." While he isn't Two-Spirit per se ― though he did say he carries a female spirit ― the wacipi was his moment to serve as a good role model for his children.

"I just want people to understand that, you know, one person's opinion or idea is not everything. I come out and represent, even though I'm not a Two-Spirit person," Blackman said. "I want them to know that there's support and to be able to maybe lead by example, that that might not be your lifestyle, but you can still be supportive of people without the judgment."

In the current climate, where South Dakota and other states have recently banned gender-affirming care for transgender people, the Two-Spirit movement is more sensitive to attacks than it used to be, Matson said, which makes events like Saturday's wacipi all the more important for making Two-Spirit people and anyone under the LGBTQ+ umbrella feel welcome.

"For everybody, it goes a long way because people feel isolated and alone in their communities and we just want them to know, like, there's a lot of us here," Matson said. "We love you. We support you. We want you here."

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Pride, Indigenous heritage intersect at Sioux Falls wacipi