“Lawyers should have a good understanding of the unique and multi-faceted nature of Indigenous relationships that exist among, between and within groups of Indigenous peoples. In particular, lawyers ought to give special consideration to intersectional experiences when representing Indigenous women, children, Elders, and Indigenous people who are Two Spirit.”[1]
On November 12, 2018, the Ontario Bar Association’s (OBA) Aboriginal Law Section (ALS) and Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee (SOGIC) hosted a much-needed and long overdue program focusing on the experiences of Indigenous Two Spirited people. The program, Indigenous Two Spirited People: Historical and Current Duality of Marginalization, brought together a learned panel that included: former justice of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, the Honourable Gloria J. Epstein, Professor Tuma Young, and Douglas Elliott from Cambridge LLP. The speakers brought with them an unparalleled level of knowledge, experience, and expertise to a program that was well received by its more-than 50 online and in-person attendees. The program was accredited for two Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (“EDI”) hours.
This review is intended to memorialize what has hopefully been the start of a much grander conversation within the OBA and broader legal community on the rights and experiences of Indigenous Two Spirited people in the Canadian legal system.
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