Intersex Awareness Day.
Yesterday was Intersex Awareness Day.
Oct 26th marks the 5th annual celebrate intersexual awareness day! Today is the (inter)national day of grass-roots action to end shame, secrecy and unwanted genital cosmetic surgeries on intersex children.
Via Queers United, where you can learn more about the issue and what you can do take action.
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This post is ironic.
Do Intersexuals really face discrimination in society? I don't know anything. Can anyone explain?
Perhaps you should try clicking on the link provided in the post =)
Lauren I've clicked and learned. You have to remember that not all of us live in liberal areas. Be patient with us townsfolk from Red state towns in Blue States.
What exactly does the political color of your town have to do with anything? There's a link right on the OP that says "where you can learn more about the issue..."
Plus, you can Google "intersex discrimination" - the words you needed to Google were right there in your query.
1. If you Google something you can't always tell if it's reliable.
2. Town's political color has everything to do with it. I sometimes still feel as though as I have to wear sunglasses when buying "Ms.", "Bust", and "Bitch". I feel as though someone is watching me. Or maybe it's the Men in suits trying to corner me from reporting a UFO that I saw as a kid. I don't know. We all have to be very careful.
Samitha, can anybody trace our information through this blog, like the government??
Your's in Fear of those suppressing UFO witnesses, Toongrrl
1. The smiley face at the end of my comment was to let you know that I was trying to be helpful. I'm not sure how I could have come across more patiently. And, considering what YOU wrote in response to a post about discrimination against intersex people ("Do Intersexuals really face discrimination in society?"), I'd say my response was very kind.
2. Why do you assume I'm from a liberal area? Even if I was, it has nothing to do with your ignorance about this subject and your apparent inability to Google some words or click on a link.
3. Let's not generalize and stereotype people based on their physical location.
What I'm trying to say-- in order to help you in future comments/posts on this site-- is to think before you write, and realize that this isn't Feminism 101.
1. I didn't see the smilely face.
2. Sometimes ya gotta be careful with what you Google. And I have parents who check out search engines (I know pathetic, ok?)
3. I know this ain't Feminism 101. I am not averse to taking Women's Studies, I have family members who'd pester me about it and I don't want to waste anytime explaining to them.
This is from Ms. Dumbass (note lack of sarcasm)
watch XXY it's a great movie about an intersexed girl. it's a foreign film
Except XXY was inaccurate in some ways. Its usually Klinefelters which is a male intersex disorder, and most people with Klinefelters identify as male (though some do transition).
Since I am intersex, I would like to add in my personal story.
I was born with a form of Partial Androgen Insenstivity Syndrome (PAIS), and was assigned male. I went through normalization (gender assignment) proceedures as an infant.
AIS is a spectrum intersex disorder the affects people with XY chromosomes, it ranges from Complete AIS, which is XY females, to normal though infertile males, which is a mild form of PAIS. AIS is a form of cellular insensitivity to androgens, this insensitivity can range significantly throughout the body from only effecting the muscal (Kennedy Syndrome) to effecting the entire bodies makeup (CAIS). Folks with AIS are born XY chromosomes, but they can be clearly male, clearly female, or well...born with atypical genitalia which frequently results in normalization proceedures (either male viralization or female assignment).
I have a form of PAIS and I was born with atypical genitalia.
Contrary to popular belief not all people who have IS and atypical genitalia are assigned female, some are assigned male, it all depends on what the doctor has to work with and the exact nature of the condition. The problem is the nonconsensual nature of the matter, and the fact that the diagnosis and surgeries are frequently hidden from those who have them. In the past whatever was done, was done in secret without even parental consent with regards to the exact nature of the surgery, this changed in the nineties when parental consent was required. (Even now though the entire process is convoluted and ethically problematic). It seems that my parents did not know what happened beyond a four hour surgery as an infant they felt was routine. Even without the scars from normalization proceedure I have visable signs of a physical intersex syndrome. I was diagnosed with PAIS before puberty, and had hormone shots to trigger puberty. I also had an odd puberty at that, but I don't want to go into it. I was not informed about the exact nature of what PAIS was exactly, but I did know I had it. I was told I was infertile in my teens and was told as an adult i had hormone sensitivity issues. As an adult I began to figure things out.
I was having health issues to related to PAIS, I wish I can explain them all, but it was not fun. At some point I did figure out what PAIS meant. I never identified as male and I ended up transitioning to female in my late twenties. Sometime in my childhood I decided I wanted to be female and it seemed to stick, and I began acting increasingly gender nonconforming, especially as I grew older. Transition alot of ways it felt like a reclaimation of my own body from questionable medical practices. For the first time I am begining to feel like its my own, and I am not some subject to Kafkaesq medical practices.
There is no easy explanation for this and what its like, I just thought this may be a start.
With regards to I being included on LGBT, alot of intersex people rightfully have a problem being included in it. Also alot of intersex transitioners do not indentify as transsexual either (and are even less likely to identify as transgender). I am not going to say everybody feels this way, but I do know IS folks who do, and some who don't.
Simone, I appreciate your voice and your input on this thread. May I ask you whether you personally view "intersex" as an identity?
If you are disinclined to answer, that is absolutely your prerogative. I'm asking because (on Alixana's suggestion to Toongrrl) I was just googling intersex discrimination, and the first hit was http://www.intersexinitiative.org/law/nondiscrimination.html, which talks about how the majority of intersex individuals do not view their intersex status as an identity in the same way that LGBT folk view their LGBT status as an identity.
Again, I know it is not your job to educate others about being intersex, and if you view this inquiry as presumptuous or inappropriate, I both sincerely apologize and withdraw the question.
Intersex as an identity is complicated, because it is and it isn't. That is really an individual thing, and many people who are intersex just identify as men or women with a medical condition. So the reality is, for most its not an identity the same way LGBT is. I know some who identify as intersexual, and take on an androgynous identity, for them, intersex is an identity akin to LGBT. For me personally, I don't identify as intersexual, intersex is not an identity akin to LGBT.
For me it is part of who I am as a person, and being intersex did have an effect on my life. Is it a core identity? I really don't think so. I think it may be an identity closer to other medical/disablity identities such as Aspergers, Deaf, etc, at least that seems to be the prevailing case within the IS community. So including it in the LGBT alphabet soup may not be appropriate. Including it as part of the medical rights community most certianly is, since alot of the issues have to do with medical ethics.
Simone, thank you very much for your answer and your insight. I sincerely appreciate it.
Except XXY was inaccurate in some ways. Its usually Klinefelters which is a male intersex disorder, and most people with Klinefelters identify as male (though some do transition).
Since I am intersex, I would like to add in my personal story.
I was born with a form of Partial Androgen Insenstivity Syndrome (PAIS), and was assigned male. I went through normalization (gender assignment) proceedures as an infant.
AIS is a spectrum intersex disorder the affects people with XY chromosomes, it ranges from Complete AIS, which is XY females, to normal though infertile males, which is a mild form of PAIS. AIS is a form of cellular insensitivity to androgens, this insensitivity can range significantly throughout the body from only effecting the muscal (Kennedy Syndrome) to effecting the entire bodies makeup (CAIS). Folks with AIS are born XY chromosomes, but they can be clearly male, clearly female, or well...born with atypical genitalia which frequently results in normalization proceedures (either male viralization or female assignment).
I have a form of PAIS and I was born with atypical genitalia.
Contrary to popular belief not all people who have IS and atypical genitalia are assigned female, some are assigned male, it all depends on what the doctor has to work with and the exact nature of the condition. The problem is the nonconsensual nature of the matter, and the fact that the diagnosis and surgeries are frequently hidden from those who have them. In the past whatever was done, was done in secret without even parental consent with regards to the exact nature of the surgery, this changed in the nineties when parental consent was required. (Even now though the entire process is convoluted and ethically problematic). It seems that my parents did not know what happened beyond a four hour surgery as an infant they felt was routine. Even without the scars from normalization proceedure I have visable signs of a physical intersex syndrome. I was diagnosed with PAIS before puberty, and had hormone shots to trigger puberty. I also had an odd puberty at that, but I don't want to go into it. I was not informed about the exact nature of what PAIS was exactly, but I did know I had it. I was told I was infertile in my teens and was told as an adult i had hormone sensitivity issues. As an adult I began to figure things out.
I was having health issues to related to PAIS, I wish I can explain them all, but it was not fun. At some point I did figure out what PAIS meant. I never identified as male and I ended up transitioning to female in my late twenties. Sometime in my childhood I decided I wanted to be female and it seemed to stick, and I began acting increasingly gender nonconforming, especially as I grew older. Transition alot of ways it felt like a reclaimation of my own body from questionable medical practices. For the first time I am begining to feel like its my own, and I am not some subject to Kafkaesq medical practices.
There is no easy explanation for this and what its like, I just thought this may be a start.
With regards to I being included on LGBT, alot of intersex people rightfully have a problem being included in it. Also alot of intersex transitioners do not indentify as transsexual either (and are even less likely to identify as transgender). I am not going to say everybody feels this way, but I do know IS folks who do, and some who don't.
Except XXY was inaccurate in some ways. Its usually Klinefelters which is a male intersex disorder, and most people with Klinefelters identify as male (though some do transition).
Since I am intersex, I would like to add in my personal story.
I was born with a form of Partial Androgen Insenstivity Syndrome (PAIS), and was assigned male. I went through normalization (gender assignment) proceedures as an infant.
AIS is a spectrum intersex disorder the affects people with XY chromosomes, it ranges from Complete AIS, which is XY females, to normal though infertile males, which is a mild form of PAIS. AIS is a form of cellular insensitivity to androgens, this insensitivity can range significantly throughout the body from only effecting the muscal (Kennedy Syndrome) to effecting the entire bodies makeup (CAIS). Folks with AIS are born XY chromosomes, but they can be clearly male, clearly female, or well...born with atypical genitalia which frequently results in normalization proceedures (either male viralization or female assignment).
I have a form of PAIS and I was born with atypical genitalia.
Contrary to popular belief not all people who have IS and atypical genitalia are assigned female, some are assigned male, it all depends on what the doctor has to work with and the exact nature of the condition. The problem is the nonconsensual nature of the matter, and the fact that the diagnosis and surgeries are frequently hidden from those who have them. In the past whatever was done, was done in secret without even parental consent with regards to the exact nature of the surgery, this changed in the nineties when parental consent was required. (Even now though the entire process is convoluted and ethically problematic). It seems that my parents did not know what happened beyond a four hour surgery as an infant they felt was routine. Even without the scars from normalization proceedure I have visable signs of a physical intersex syndrome. I was diagnosed with PAIS before puberty, and had hormone shots to trigger puberty. I also had an odd puberty at that, but I don't want to go into it. I was not informed about the exact nature of what PAIS was exactly, but I did know I had it. I was told I was infertile in my teens and was told as an adult i had hormone sensitivity issues. As an adult I began to figure things out.
I was having health issues to related to PAIS, I wish I can explain them all, but it was not fun. At some point I did figure out what PAIS meant. I never identified as male and I ended up transitioning to female in my late twenties. Sometime in my childhood I decided I wanted to be female and it seemed to stick, and I began acting increasingly gender nonconforming, especially as I grew older. Transition alot of ways it felt like a reclaimation of my own body from questionable medical practices. For the first time I am begining to feel like its my own, and I am not some subject to Kafkaesq medical practices.
There is no easy explanation for this and what its like, I just thought this may be a start.
With regards to I being included on LGBT, alot of intersex people rightfully have a problem being included in it. Also alot of intersex transitioners do not indentify as transsexual either (and are even less likely to identify as transgender). I am not going to say everybody feels this way, but I do know IS folks who do, and some who don't.
Oops,
Can somebody delete those. I had an error message keep reoccuring, and it seems to have posted them.