We'wha - Tumblr Posts

iidentifyasathreat2u

1 year ago

LGBTQ+ History! We'Wha

Illustration of historical figure, We'Wha, a Zuni Native American from the 19th century. Illustration is based on photos of them, they have long dark hair tied back into two knots and wear a one shoulder, woven dress with a patterned hem and tassels. Along with hoop earrings and a long bead necklace.

Text reads: We'wha 1849 - 1896
A Zuni Native American from New Mexico, who became a cultural ambassador and educator to many European-American colonials about Zuni culture. We'wha has been referred to in records with he/she/they pronouns. She was an artist, known for her pottery and weaving skills. We'wha was a Lhamana, which, in Zuni culture, is someone who is born male but takes on both female and male roles and clothing and are respected members of their tribes. Some contemporary lhamana also identify with the pan-Indian term 'two-spirit'. Lhamana often take on a number of roles in judicial and religious practices, hunting and heavy labour, areas mostly occupied my Zuni men, as well as helping with laundry, gardening and crafts, areas mostly occupied by Zuni women. We'wha was part of the Washington delegation in 1886. They met President Cleveland and were labelled as an "Indian Princess" by the American press. We'wha played a great part in educating anthropologists and historians on Zuni culture and history due to their extensive knowledge and passion in preserving Zuni practices and way of life. Sadly, shortly after We'wha's visit to Washington, the US Office of Indian Affairs, pushed for Pueblo Indians' assimilation into Anglo society and the dismantling of tribal culture and lhamana recognition.
ID: Another illustration of We'wha, inspired by photos of them. The illustration is a full-body version of the title illustration, showing the rest of We'wha's attire. They wear the same one-shoulder tunic/dress with a thick woven belt and boots. She has a couple of bracelets on and carries a small woven basket.

Continuing on from my last post, let's look at another gender-non-conforming historic figure in celebration of Trans Awareness Month!

We'wha was a Zuni Native American from the 19th century who gained notoriety and fame for their prolific work as a cultural ambassador and educator on Zuni culture. We'wha was lhamana, which is someone, who takes on both female and male orientated roles within their tribe as well as dressing in male and female clothing.

"The Zuni lhamana, like other Indigenous social, cultural and ceremonial roles, exist in an Indigenous matrix...[lhamana] cannot be reduced to a conventional set of gender roles or even modern transgender or genderqueer ones" - quote from Wikipedia page 'Lhamana'

It's important we celebrate other gnc identities throughout history as it helps once again, reiterate the statement that queer has always been here! Plus it's fun to learn!

Image & text descriptions in ALT

Tags :

education lgbtq history lgbt history lgbtqia lgbtq community queer history trans awareness we'wha gender identity Queer trans women nonbinary two-spirit american history

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iidentifyasathreat2u

1 year ago

We'Wha (1849-1896)

[Image Description: A stylized portrait of We'Wha, a Zuni lhamana with a medium complexion, black hair twisted up into a style similar to pigtails. She wears silver earrings and a long necklace.]

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Tags :

we'wha queering up history two-spirit lgbtq lgbtq community lgbt pride lgbtqia trans women non binary nonbinary queer history lgbt history american history history

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