This October 26, we commemorate the first public intersex meeting in front of the American Academy of Pediatrics, in 1996. This date has been celebrated since 2003 as International Intersex Awareness Day. While November 8 refers to the birth of Herculine Barbin, the oldest intersex person whose memories were found in 1838. Her birthday has been Intersex Remembrance Day since 2005.
Even though we are starting to better understand the lives and experiences of trans people, those of intersex people may still seem nebulous to many people.
Intersex people represent in the world today approximately 1.7% to 3% of the population – this is an estimate because it is rarely written in black and white in their medical records. Different names can also be used to designate the many possible variations.
Read also: Fortnight of visibility Intersexual 2023: here is the program to fight againstintersexophobia
What does it mean to be intersex?
Actually, Intersex people are born with sexual characteristics (chromosomes, hormones, internal and/or external genitalia, etc.) which do not correspond to the typical definitions of the so-called male or female anatomy.
In addition to numerous clear and concise resources, the French reference association of and for intersex people Collectif Intersexe et Allié e s provides this definition of intersexuality:
“Intersex refers to the social situation of people born with primary and/or secondary sexual characteristics considered as not corresponding to typical social and medical definitions of feminine and masculine. »
Intersex people, still victims of physical, sexual and psychological violence.
These physical peculiarities are part of the diversity of living beings; in the vast majority of cases, these variations in sexual development do not represent a health problem.
However, the medical profession tends to want to change, sometimes from birth, within invasive, even violent, treatments and interventions the bodies of intersex people to conform to male and female social norms. France, for example, was condemned three times in 2016 by the United Nations for this type of mutilation of intersex children.
Beyond the anatomical dimension, it is therefore important to take into account the medical, social and legal dimensions of the life experiences of intersex people. Here you are some podcasts you can listen to and sharein these two weeks of visibility of intersex people and fights for their rights!
Camille, episode 08 — Medicine, the construction of bodies
On his podcast Camilla (on the LGBTI+ community, its struggles, its rights and its cultures), the journalist Camille Regache interviews the sociologist Michal Raz, author of a thesis on Producing evidence on intersexuality.
This episode allows us to better understand the dimensions and social consequences of the assignment of male and female sex, and the violence that can accompany it in case of non-compliance:
“Any body that does not fit into one or the other of these boxes is considered abnormal or even diseased. This binary conception of medicine ignores this our bodies and our identities are above all a matter of variations and degrees. »
Listen to episode 08 of Camilla on Apple Podcasts – Spotify – Deezer – Youtube
Endepisode 30 — Mischa
In this episode of the Intersectional Testimonies Podcast End (which I co-authored with Douce Dibondo), Mischa tells his story.
Mischa is intersex, artist and activist for Intersexe and Allies Collective. She evokes in particular her childhood marked by repeated normative and corrective interventions and their consequences on her mental health and her ability to relate. The activist defines intersex people in particular:
“A person whose body does not fit traditional definitions of so-called male or female anatomy. It lies on the spectrum between the two. There are approximately forty variations in sexual development.
Beyond the anatomical approach, these are above all people who have experienced a medical and social invalidation of their bodies. »
Listen to Mischa End on Apple Podcasts – Spotify – Deezer
Warning, sensitive content: This episode deals specifically with medical violence, sexual mutilation and child crime.
Extimité, episode 36 – Morphine
In this other episode ofEndMorphine, intersex person and drag artist, also speaks:
“It’s difficult to grow up as intersex because it’s not formally marked in your medical record, no two journeys are the same, so you can never feel legitimate, never have the courage to talk about it. »
Morphine talks specifically about her journey of medical wandering, her various hormone treatments, and how drag allows her to question and play with her gender identity and expression, whereas intersexophobia had made them minefields for her.
Listen to Morphine End on Apple Podcasts – Spotify – Deezer
Even today, intersex people and their allies are asking for it “the end of mutilations, sterilizations, non-consensual hormonal treatments on intersex people, regardless of their age”. You can support them through the website of the Collectif Intersexes et Alliés et Alliés association which presents links to petitions, mobilizations and ways of donating.
Une photo credit: pexels-anna-shvets-4611972
Listen to Apéro des Daronnes, Madmoizelle’s show that aims to break down taboos on parenting.
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
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