“Cities have the capability of providing something For everybody, only because, and only when, They are created by everybody.� -Margy Waller
Ethnographic Study Natalia Ochoa, Tasha Preston, Jarrod Watson
Introduction Native American LGTBQ facing poverty Location: Central & San Mateo
Native American LGBTQ & Poverty Location: Central & San Mateo Why are there a large number of LGBTQ Native Americans facing poverty? The Native American population had to overcome many adversities causing permanent discrimination since being inhabited by outsiders. The Native American LGBTQ population are moving to the cities to look for employment and more opportunities only to find the same situation of discrimination exists here also. In conclusion, LGBTQ Native Americans tend to congregate in the same locations based on demographic qualities.
Definition Native American Noun noun: Native American; plural noun: Native Americans 1. a member of any of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. adjective adjective: Native American 1. relating to Native Americans.
Definition LGBTQ: Acronym that stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer, and is used to designate a community of people whose sexual or gender identities can create shared political and social concerns.
For the purpose of simplification the commonly accepted definitions of important terms and concepts have been given below. But first it’s important to introduce the concept of ‘self-definition’. Essentially, it is important that people preserve the right to self-define into any or none of the categories below. It is not for others to dictate how we define, or which box society can most comfortably place us into. Lesbian: A woman who is attracted to other women. Gay: A man who is attracted to other men. Bisexual: An individual who is attracted to both genders. Trans: An umbrella term that seeks to incorporate individuals whose gender identities do not match their biological sex, for example, somebody who is born male-bodied and identifies as a woman. The term ‘Trans’ includes those who are pre or post surgery and those who do not wish to undertake surgery to alter their sex. A distinction is posed between sex (male/female) which is a biological given at birth, and gender (man/woman) which is a sociological and psychological construction concerned with characteristics that are not biological. Queer/Question: Individuals who experience fluidity in their experience of sexuality or gender and therefore do not identify strictly as LGB or T. The term ‘Queer’ can also include those who do not identify as either gender.
Definition Native American LGBTQ or Two Spirit Two Spirit is a contemporary term used to identify Native American Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and some Transgender individuals with traditional and cultural understandings of gender roles and identity. Encompassing term used is “Two Spirit� adopted in 1990 at the 3rd International Native Gay & Lesbian Gathering in Winnipeg, Canada. The term is from the Anishinabe language meaning to have both female and male spirits within one person and is used in rural and urban communities to describe the reclaiming of their traditional identity and roles. The term refers to culturally prescribed spiritual and social roles; however, the term is not applicable to all tribes.
Observation Diagrams, Charts, Maps
Native American LGBTQ facing Poverty Native American Tribes across New Mexico & Arizona
Native American Tribes in New Mexico
Location: Central & San Mateo
Location: Central & San Mateo
Location: Central & San Mateo
Walgreens
Parking Lot
Multi-level Office Building
Castle Shell Title Max Gas Station Mister Car Wash
Wal-Mart
Site Pictures Bus stop on Central & San Mateo
People hanging out in the parking lot of Walgreens
Site Pictures Bus stop on Central & San Mateo
People hanging out at gas station
Site Pictures
Bus stop on Central & San Mateo
Traffic on Central & San Mateo
Race Total Population: 38,647 0,1% 2,3%
0,2%
1,9%
6,2% 4,1%
51,9%
33,3%
Hispanic or Latino
White Alone
Black or African American Alone
American Indian & Alaska Native Alone
Asian Alone
Native Hawaiian & Other Pacific Islander Alone
Some Other Race Alone
Two or More Races
LGBTQ NATIVE AMERICAN POPULATION FOR NEW MEXICO IN 2011: 3% Lesbian
Gay
Bi-Sexual
Transgender
Queer
[VALUE]
0.7%
1.1%
1.1%
Population for 87108 Central/San Mateo Area 5
4,5
4
3,5
3
2,5
2
1,5
1
0,5
0 Under 5 yrs
5 to 9 yrs 10 to 14 yrs15 to 19 yrs20 to 24 yrs25 to 29 yrs30 to 34 yrs35 to 39 yrs40 to 44 yrs45 to 49 yrs50 to 54 yrs55 to 59 yrs60 to 64 yrs65 to 69 yrs70 to 74 yrs75 to 79 yrs80 to 84 yrs 85+ yrs Male
Female
Races below poverty level: $11,770 by % 50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0 White
Black
American Indian
Asian Albuquerque
Native Hawaiian New Mexico
Other Race
2+ Races
Hispanic
COMMUTING TO WORK Car, Truck, Van--drove alone
Car, Truck, Van--carpooled
Public Transportation (excluding taxi cab)
Walked
4% 5% 4%
5%
11%
71%
Other Means
Worked at Home
Vehicles Available 9.000
8.000
7.000
6.000
5.000
4.000
3.000
2.000
1.000
0 No Vehicles Available
1 Vehicle Available
2 Vehicles Available
Total Occupied Housing Units: $16,994
3+ Vehicles Available
Conclusion
Native American LGBTQ & Poverty Location: Central & San Mateo During our observations, we recognized that at least half of the subjects were Native American. Of those, roughly 75% were below national poverty standards and 15% were LGBTQ. LGBTQ Native Americans are a minority of a minority that are effected the greatest by poverty in Albuquerque with only 6% of Albuquerque’s 87108 total population being Native American and 3% of New Mexico’s LGBTQ community is Native American. On the other hand Native Americans make up almost 45 % of the population below poverty in our area of concentration.
Works Cited Usner, Daniel H. Indian Work: Language and Livelihood in Native American History. Cambridge, US: Harvard University Press, 2009. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 29 September 2016. New Mexico Department of Health 2011. Health Inequities by Sexual Orientation. 2005-2011. http://www.nmtupac.com/pdf/LGBT_2013.pdf Findley, Lisa. "Power, Space, and Architecture," from Building Change: Architecture, Politics and Cultural Agency. London and New York: Routledge, 2005. Print. City Data. Advameg, Inc. 2016. Retrieved from: http://www.city-data.com/poverty/poverty-Albuquerque-NewMexico.html Margy Waller Lecture “The Arts & Our Future Communities.” City of Albuquerque. The official website for the City of Albuquerque. 2016. Retrieved from: http://www.cabq.gov/ Naswood, Elton, Jim, Mattee. Mending the Rainbow: Working with the Native American/Two Spirit Community. Retrieved from: http://www.tribal-institute.org/2012/B6PP.pdf