Sex XXYX by Syeda Campbell

Wow! What century is this? It interests me that in year 2014 I am just learning about intersex people. This should have been taught in elementary school. Think about the children!!!!! I just can’t imagine the children that go through elementary not knowing if they should identify as a boy or a girl. In the Merriam Webster dictionary the definition of intersex reads an individual that is intermediate in sexual characters between normal man and women. I don’t know about you, but reading that definition makes me mad. What is normal? Who are we to decide what is normal and what is not? The word normal is what makes individuals feel like they don’t belong. If this sex was taught in elementary school maybe these children would feel like they are “normal”, because let's be honest we as society are not the right people to decide what normal is. [1]In 1993 1 in 500 births were unsure sex because of the external genitalia. This has increased to 1 in 1500 according to gynecology text. This is too many people being born with unsure genitalia for it not to be considered to be normal. Puberty is a hard time for any child, but what about the children who are intersex and don't know what is going on with their body. If sex was talked about openly like the native tribes, maybe people wouldn’t shy away from certain topics. [2]In native tribes people believed that sex was a natural part of life. There was no secrecy when it came to sexual intercourse. The younger you knew about sex the better they believed. They also believed in two spirit people, which were often men who dressed as women and portrayed to be both a man and woman. These people were highly respected in the native communities. Can you imagine how intersex people were probably treated then? When did sexual parts become so taboo? The point is that people have sex, if they didn’t we wouldn’t have an earth that is overpopulated with people. Intersex people should be treated in the open without shame. Another controversial topic concerning intersex children is the surgery they are given when they are babies. 

I know personally that maybe this intersex surgery is performed for the best interest of the child, but it shouldn't be up to a doctor or a parent to decide what that human being should be. Sex is biological. It is what you are born with, but gender is what you identify with. Most people don't know what they want to be by college, how can someone else decide that for you? It is very unfair and can cause long term confusion and depression. If intersex was talked about openly in schools, at a young age, people could be more educated about others and it could make intersex people feel like they belong. Let's face it not everybody is Barbie and Ken. 

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[1] Alice Dreger, “"Ambiguous Sex"--or Ambivalent Medicine?" (1998): 24-35, http://www.isna.org/articles/ambivalent_medicine (accessed January 27, 2014).

[2] Moore, Crystal, “Native American sexuality violation in the conquest of the Americas” “ Lecture” Western cultures, University North Carolina Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, January 21, 2014