…our friends, family, and fellow community members: we have so much to celebrate as we have seen so much much progress this past year!

Intersex Solidarity Day began originally as the Intersex Day of Remembrance, observed today in honor of the birthday of Herculine Barbin. Barbin was an intersex woman living in 19th century France, whose diaries were discovered and published posthumously by Michel Foucault. As she chronicled, upon being found to be intersex, Herculine was tried in court in an attempt to determine her “true sex” as male or female. The court determined to legally re-register Herculine’s sex as male, and make her live socially as a man. Barbin tragically committed suicide not long after.

Recently, we witnessed a new attempt by our current administration to define and control intersex bodies and lives as only male or female. This flies not only in the face of scientific fact, but of our right to self-determination.

We stand in solidarity with all our fellow intersex organizations in the United Stagtes and around the world, and continue to advocate, with all of you, for our right to bodily autonomy! In addition, we continue the fight for our right to be legally recognized as equal intersex–not male or female– citizens under the law.

In peace and solidarity,

The Intersex Campaign for Equality (IC4E)