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Two Spirits: Honoring the Spectrum & Remembering Fred Martinez

Thu, 06/09/2011 - 09:15
Submitted by Marisa Black

In the US this June, PBS stations will begin airing Two Spirits. This film memorializes Fred Martinez, a 16-year-old killed in June 2001. It also goes behind Fred's personal story, exploring non-binary gender systems within Native American traditions.

This Map of Gender-Diverse Cultures is included in online material for Two Spirits, and reiterates the great variation in gender expression worldwide. That information, in conjunction with Dr. Lulu's post last month on Hermaphrodites and Cross-Dressing Saints, is enlightening for global and historic perspectives.

In April, Carlin wrote about Pakistan giving legal recognition of a third gender, juxtaposed with an attack on Chrissy Lee Polis in a Baltimore McDonalds. Recently I've also shared my personal perspective, as one whose partner considers herself Both and Between in the Two-Party Gender System.

Where I live, Two Spirits will air as part of the Independent Lens series the night of June 14. You can check your local listings here. DVD information can be found under "See the Film" on the official website. In the mean time, here are three clips:

Finding room for all of me
www.darkgreeny.com

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a possibility for some education?

Sun, 06/12/2011 - 01:33
curiosity (not verified)

I'm very much looking forward to seeing this, I've got a recorder set, because it will be airing on my PBS network while I'm at work. As a writer who is trying to write some pieces that involve nontraditional relationships and some characters that are intersexed or have alternative gender identities, finding research materials, historical, biographical, even just general ones proves to be nearly impossible. I want to create realistic characters and really clinical resources don't really help, they're mostly just frustrating.

I'm hoping that maybe, by offering a suggestion here, it'll lead me to some helpful information so that I can make better characters who are more believable. Basically, what I'm wondering is if, maybe, somewhere on this site, there could be a reading list compiled. With your resources and contributers, I'm thinking that the list you could pull together on a variety of topics would have good, solid, comprehensible sources and help many people not only learn but satisfy their own natural curiosities in a very safe manner that helps them make really informed decisions about themselves and their life choices. :D
Thanks!

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