Celebrating Intersex Awareness Day!

Photograph: Jody Rogac/The Observer

Photograph: Jody Rogac/The Observer

The Human Body - and it’s infinite Possibilities

The largest study ever done in the US on the physical and mental health of intersex adults just came out - perfect timing for Intersex Awareness Day, October 26, 2020. Intersex describe people whose reproductive body parts (both inside and outside), chromosomes and/or hormones fall outside what is considered typical of male and female. So, for example, an intersex person can have a vulva, vagina and testes (but the testes don’t produce sperm). Someone else might have XY chromosomes and a vulva with a visibly large clitoris. Some intersex traits are identified at birth, some not until puberty, others not until pregnancy isn’t happening, and some people never find out. 

We don’t really know how many people are born with an intersex condition, but it’s approximated to be about 1.7% - the same number of people born with red hair. Despite how common it is, many intersex people face stigma, harassment and discrimination, which leads to feelings of loneliness and shame about their bodies.

For many years and still to this day, when an infant is born with an intersex trait, parents often decide their child’s sex and doctors perform medically unnecessary surgeries to ‘fix’ the genitals to look more typical. But as that child grows and gets to know who they are, they don’t always identify with the sex they were assigned. Yet, they now have genitals that match the sex their parents and doctors decided for them. 

In addition, the surgeries can cause long-term pain, scarring and lead to depression and anxiety. Because of these outcomes, many organizations such as the United Nations and the World Health organizations consider intersex surgeries on infants to be a human rights violation. Many intersex people now advocate for letting the person decide for themselves, when they are old enough, if they want surgery. 

In 2017, international model Hanne Gaby Odiele made a big splash, when she revealed that she was intersex. Hanne talks openly about the harmful impact multiples surgeries had on her and is a big advocate for removing the secrecy, shame and stigma around being intersex. She’s inspired many other people to come forth and share their experiences. 

The more we emphasize that every person’s body is unique and that there is not one way for bodies to be, the better for all of us. By realizing that we don’t all fit into two nice, neat boxes, that there is great variation in our chemistry, biology and physiology, the more we decrease body shame and stigma for everyone. All bodies are amazing and beautiful, and everyone deserves to love who they are! 

Resources:

Sex EdRachel Ginocchiosex, gender, intersex