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Intersex Communities


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Intersex Communities

Intersex people are born with physical sex characteristics that don’t fit medical and social norms for female or male bodies [1]

We all deserve to enjoy loving and respectful relationships.

Within our LGBTIQ+ communities, some of us are intersex. Intersex is not a reflection of a person’s sexuality. You might be intersex and queer, intersex and trans, intersex and multigender attracted, just as a person may be cisgender (identify with their sex assigned at birth) or not.

A respectful relationship is one where we can be our authentic selves without fear of discrimination or hostility. You deserve to feel safe, welcome, and respected within all your relationships, including with partners or families, at work or at school. Sometimes our relationships don’t turn out the way we plan or hope for.

A disrespectful relationship could be one where, as a person born with variations of sex characteristic, you experience abuse and harm such as body shaming or physical or emotional violence from a partner or your family member.

Discrimination and stigma play a harmful and negative role in the lives of people who are intersex. Rigid gender stereotypes, assumptions made about people’s sexuality, gender or relationships as well as ableism, all play a part in creating unsafe or harmful relationships.

Addressing intersexism and the discrimination faced by people born with variations of sex characteristics in our LGBTIQ+ communities promotes a culture in which everyone feels welcome.

Our LGBTIQ+ communities should be respectful and safe spaces for everyone to enjoy.

All of us deserve respect.

Recommended Resources

Intersex Human Rights Australia https://ihra.org.au/

The Darlington Statement https://darlington.org.au/affirmation/

 

[1] Intersex Human Rights Australia working definition https://ihra.org.au/18106/what-is-intersex/

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