2012 Resolution: Spreading Intersex awareness!

Spreading awareness and ending discrimination

MODERN medicine saves many lives and doctors are people dedicated to serving the health needs of others. OII United States does not stand in opposition to the medical community but does oppose some historic practices and recent developments in terminology and an approach that seeks to exclude intersex people themselves from discussion about the future course of treatment.

Note:

The DSD Consortium consulted almost no intersex people before making the decision to change “intersex” to “disorders of sex development.”

Inhumane treatment of intersex children

It is society which has produced rigid views on sex and sex assignment – this is what lies behind the inhumane treatment that intersex children have been subjected to. The medical profession, usually drawn from a particular stratum of this rigid society does not escape the cultural influence which demands only two sexes. It is only natural that the medical profession would see one of its duties as being to correct what to them appears to be abnormal because this is part of their professional training.

Consciousness-raising is a tripartite task

It is clear that the process of raising consciousness is a threefold task involving:

  1. intersex people themselves
  2. people who provide healthcare to intersex people
  3. the wider society within which we all live

Education is necessary, for all three above, and through self-help groups, variation-specific groups, internet groups, doctor-patient representative consultations, LGBTI groups, the media and television documentaries this has started to happen. There is still much to do in this area, and we can all assist by educating others about the existence of intersex variations.

Refer people to this website

Please refer as many people as you can to our site to do so. We must raise awareness and acceptance of the full range of intersex issues within mainstream culture, and the medical profession, in order to achieve equality, dignity, respect, appropriate health-care, and acceptance within society.

If you would like to help spread awareness of intersex variations and the issues the intersex community faces, through a presentation or training for your staff, students, faculty and so on, please contact us at:

oii@oiiusa.org

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