ID: what is intersex?
The term âintersexâ is used to describe an individual whose chromosomes, hormones, or sexual organs are not in line with the perceived male/female sex binary.
SEX is not binary.
SEX is a spectrum.
Sex is determined by a doctor upon birth using the following guidelines: (according to the infantâs genitals):
Bellow is a graphic of a ruler, labelled âPhall-O-Meterâ, from left to right:
The first, slim section is pink and marked with a female symbol, to the left it says: âitâs a girl! (under 3/8 inch)â
The second section, 3 times larger than the first, is purple and marked with an X, underneath it says: âunacceptable! Babies with âambiguous genitalsâ often undergo inhumane, dangerous, and un- necessary surgeries to ânormalizeâ their genitals, many times without parental consent!â
The final and largest section is 6 times larger than the first, is blue and marked with a male symbol, to the right it says: âitâs a boy! (over 1 inch)â
Under the graphic the text continues:
INTERSEX PEOPLEâŚ
are about as common as redheads!
can have any sexual orientation or gender identity.
should never be called âhermaphrodites.â
should have their privacy respected.
should not have to be ashamed of their bodies.
deserve to be treated like anybody else.
Bellow is a row of 5 stick figures ranging from blue to pink and from wearing trousers to skirt, to represent the gender spectrum.
INTERSEX AWARENESS DAY // October 26
sources: isna.org, actuallyintersex.tumblr.com, sexandgender.net, apcdaily.wordpress.com
Thanks for posting!
Thanks for providing a space to post :)
I was actually looking for something in my download folder the other day and this came up, and when I noticed the date was coming up, this community came to mind, so I set it aside. Canât believe I actually remembered to post it lol
An issue too many people turn a blind eye to. Thanks for sharing this.
<3 to our Intersex community
What is wrong with the term âhermaphroditeâ?
From the very first site linked in this post:
Idk about âshemaleâ, but as far as I was aware hermaphrodite was just the scientific term for an animal with both male and female traits
I would guess then (entirely uninformed) that itâs similar to the reasoning for not calling women âfemalesâ
How do you ensure the hospital doesnât perform normalization surgery?
I have not been in this position myself (though I have unfortunately delt with doctors who donât see the patient as anyone worth listening to) so this is just my personal inexperienced opinion - do your best to make it as clear as possible from the get go (and put in writing in your file) that you do not consent to such procedures, ask your doctor if itâs something they would do and leave them if they say yes. While in hospital after the birth make sure one of the parents (or guardians, or another trusted relative or friend) is always with the baby, so they canât be taken away and operated on. If possible and you feel an imminent threat - leave the hospital early (with the baby, of course!).
This isnât to say that the people who did have their children operated on without consent didnât do that, or did something wrong, or that doing these things would guarantee your babyâs safety, but thereâs only so much you can do when faced with a medical team that doesnât care about patient wishes or consent.