What it means to be intersex: concepts to debunk myths and prejudices

On International Intersex Visibility Day, we published a series of definitions, facts, and clarifications that Mauro Cabral—intersex and trans activist, director of GATE, and member of Intersex Justice*—shared on his social media about intersexuality.

October 26, 2018

By Mauro Cabral

1- Intersex people are those of us born with bodies whose sex characteristics vary from what are considered average, typical, and *the norm*. There are many different ways to be intersex .

2- Intersex people have all kinds of gender identities. Being born with an intersex body does not mean not having a gender identity, or having a third gender, or being a non-binary person. It means being born with a body that varies from the average female or male.

3- Not all intersex bodies are *visible* as such from the moment of birth. Many times they are, but many other times they are not.

4- The best way to start talking about intersex bodies in infancy and childhood is to begin with bodily diversity. For example, show that people have different colored hair—and some have no hair at all; show that many girls have long hair, but others have short hair, and many boys have short hair, but others have long hair. Of course, it's good to talk about genitals (e.g., many girls have vulvas, some girls have penises) and practices that involve them (e.g., many boys urinate standing up, other boys urinate sitting down), but the truth is that genitals are seen less frequently, and it's good to share experiences of looking and recognizing them, which open up space for acknowledging bodily diversity in a direct and straightforward way.

5- It's not about waiting for an intersex person to say what they are before performing surgery. An intersex person can say "I'm a girl," and that doesn't mean it's okay to cut off their clitoris if it's "too long" or create a vagina. Or they can say "I'm a boy," and that doesn't mean it's okay to operate on their penis to correct its shape. The person's gender identity doesn't matter, even if they don't have a gender identity or have multiple genders. The *only* thing that matters is that the person *wants* to have surgery, understanding the risks and benefits of the procedure.

6- Regarding the term "hermaphodrite": there are no people with *genitals of both sexes*; that is the mythical and artistic representation, but it is not real.

In medicine, hermaphrodites are those who possess both testicular and ovarian tissue (for example, ovotestes). This is because the hermaphrodite/pseudohermaphrodite classification was created at a time when the explanation for a person's identity lay in their gonads. Women were those with ovaries, men those with testicles, and hermaphrodites those with both. Hermaphrodite is an ancient term with a weighty history and a profound impact on the lives of those who embody it. Hermaphrodites (in the sense described above) are intersex people, but intersex people are not necessarily hermaphrodites.

The 5 NOs

Do not instrumentalize: the existence of intersex bodies, experiences, and people should not be used for other purposes, no matter how politically correct they may seem. For example, saying, *the existence of intersex bodies helps us prove that the world is non-binary*, is unacceptable.
Do not oversimplify: intersexuality is not a third sex. It is a set of multiple variations of sex characteristics. For example, saying *there are females, males, and intersex people* is incorrect.
Do NOT appropriate: Intersexuality is not a t-shirt to wear because purple and yellow look good on you. For example, saying *we are all intersex* or *today I feel intersex* is not acceptable.
Do not pathologize: intersex body variations are not a pathology. For example, saying that non-binary genders allow for a better study of intersex bodies is incorrect.
Don't make it invisible: Just because you don't talk, read, or hear about intersexuality doesn't mean no one else is. For example, saying *no one ever says anything about intersexuality* is simply not right.

*justiciaintersex@gmail.com

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