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Two Spirit people were seen as conduits between the physical and spiritual worlds, they were considered to be able to transcend. They were exceptional in the eyes of their tribes. In addition, they not only worked as mediators between the spiritual and physical worlds, but the women and the men of their tribes, too. In many Native tribes men and women had distinct speech styles; Two Spirit people knew how to speak both. They were also the only ones who could enter both the men's and women's camps. Moreover, they "brokered marriages, divorces, settled arguments, and fostered open lines of communication between the sexes" (Two Spirit History). They represented balance, which has always been an important feature of Native tribes and cultures. However, the world of the colonization-era did not appreciate this balance.
The reality of these Two Spirit people challenged the "binary view of the world of the North American colonizers and missionaries" and "threatened their core beliefs" (Two Spirit History). The repercussions were brutal, and many tribes were forced to take actions in order to protect their Two Spirit members and their community. Some tribes hid their once honored members, by changing their attire and forcing them to blend in with the non-Two Spirit part of their tribe. However, after years of colonization and the growing pressure, the tribes even started to deny the honored status and later even their existence their Two Spirit people. Many of the tribes converted to Western religions which did not accept any of their old traditional traditions or gender structures (Two Spirit History).