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Intersex Initiative (IPDX) is a Portland, Oregon based national activist and advocacy organization for people born with intersex conditions. It was founded by Emi Koyama, a multi-issue social justice activist and former intern at Intersex Society of North America (2001-02).
Intersex (also known within the medical community as DSD, or disorders of sex develpment) refers to a series of medical conditions in which a child's genetic sex (chromosomes) and phenotypic sex (genital appearance) do not match, or are somehow different from the "standard" definition of male or female. About one in 2,000 babies are born visibly intersexed, while some others are detected later.
Traditionally, the medical protocol has called for the surgical "reconstruction" of these different but generally healthy bodies to make them "normal." But this practice has become increasingly controversial, as adults who went through the treatment report being physically, emotionally, and sexually harmed by such procedures.
For more information about intersex, please see the articles section.
Caster Semenya is a South African runner who won the gold medal in the 800 meters at the 2009 World Championships competition. Soon after her victory, others alledged that she may not be a "real" woman, and demanded investigation, despite the fact she was born and raised as a girl and has lived as a woman all of her life. Some media outlets have reported that Semenya had an intersex condition, although the result of the tests have not been officially disclosed.
We have received many emails from our friends about the mistreatment of South African runner Caster Semenya by the media and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). We asked Sally Gross of the Intersex Society of South Africa for some advice as to how to best advocate for the intersex people of South Africa. Her reply is reproduced here with her permission.
[09/20/2009 Update] Support Initiative for People with atypical sex Develpment (SIPD) of Uganda also has an article about Caster Semenya case.
Posted by Emi on Sep 13, 2009
According to Xinhua News Agency, China's state-operated press (07/27/2008), organizing committee for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing "has set up a sex determination lab to test female Olympic athletes suspected to be males." The test would examine external appearance, hormone levels, and genetic and chromosomal status of any athlete suspected of faking her sex.
Prior to 1999, the International Olympic Committee routinely verified female athletes' chromosomal sex, but it had abandoned the practice both because it had resulted in unnecessary and unfair humiliation of women born with androgen insensitivity syndrome and other XY female conditions, and also because there is no definitive medical test that can determine who should be allowed to compete as a woman. The Beijing decision runs contrary to this recent development.
Perhaps it may be the case that the Beijing committee is simply trying to prevent non-intersex males from competing as females, and has no intention to exclude women with AIS and othe