What is Intersex? What does it mean to be intersexed?

Question

How do you see intersexed people in relation to other minority sexualities?

Answer 1

1) is a link to a thread where people discuss intersexes "LGBTQ...I?"

2) Link to a paper that goes through a step by step summary of what intersex means, and introduces concepts of socially constructed sex. "Educating the Uneducated: Intersexes?"

Intersexes are just points on the spectrum of human anatomy. Intersexes are not "between" male and female, as male and female are not exact static points on the spectrum of human sex, Intersex can refer to chromosome patters that differ from xx or xy or it can refer to a person whose chromosomes are either xx or xy but who's body shape defies standards of "acceptable" appearances for "male or "female" bodies, or it can be a combination of both. "male" "female" "intersex" these are categories that are socially constructed because something is socially constructed means that in can be deconstructed and ordered in an other way, in how one thinks about it, what one attributes to it, and how one defines it with labels and what significance those labels impart upon a thing; this is true of sex.

Most people who doctors would label "intersex" are not in need of surgery for health. "Intersex" is a natural, and valid biological state for a body.

Intersex is highly stigmatized because it shines a spotlight on the flaws in the structure of the binary gender system. The fallacy of the binary gender system relies on the existence and preservation of the corresponding fallacious system that says there are only two sexes. People give discrimination permission by perpetuating stereotypes that segregate people into gendered groups. These stereotypes depend on a dicotomous gender system, meaning the creation of "opposite" genders.

If the spotlight of scrutiny shines too brightly on gender, the spotlight will reveal that the notion of biological gender is highly illogically, and even purely made up. When genders fall, how many religions will fall? How many laws will have to change because many laws are gendered and segregate. Gender, like religion, education, social justice system, economy, race, class, sex, etc is a social institution. Social institutions are intricately woven together. When one is altered or debased, the affects ripple through every other social institution.

so, in relation to other sexual minorities, whether sexual orientation, or even gender orientation, i say that all of them are feared and stigmatized because they challange the current binary gender and sex systems.

Answer 2

Well I guess if an intersex person wanted to be a priest/priestess they could be either depending on how they feel at any particular ritual being done. After all they are both sexes technically. Trans folk don't shift back and forth between sexes unless they absolutely have to for work or family etc.. An MTF feels like a woman trapped in a man's body. So of course that person will want to be a priestess not a priest. Is this any help to you? I'd like to e-mail you if that's ok with you. I have some more info that you might be interested in. LL

Answer 3

An intersexual or intersex person (or organism of any unisexual species) is one who is born with genitalia and/or secondary sex characteristics determined as neither exclusively male nor female, or which combine features of the male and female sexes. The terms hermaphrodite and pseudohermaphrodite, introduced in the 19th century, are now considered antiquated, misleading and stigmatizing, and patient advocates call for these terms to be abandoned. The phrase "ambiguous genitalia" refers specifically to genital appearance, but not all intersex conditions result in atypical genital appearance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersex

“Intersex” is a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit the typical definitions of female or male. For example, a person might be born appearing to be female on the outside, but having mostly male-typical anatomy on the inside. Or a person may be born with genitals that seem to be in-between the usual male and female types—for example, a girl may be born with a noticeably large clitoris, or lacking a vaginal opening, or a boy may be born with a notably small penis, or with a scrotum that is divided so that it has formed more like labia. Or a person may be born with mosaic genetics, so that some of her cells have XX chromosomes and some of them have XY.

http://www.isna.org/faq/what_is_intersex

Answer 4

I think the easiest way to look at Intersexuality is through biology. The description Intersexual is used to describe someone whose morphology cannot be exclusively identified as male or female and/or who is chromosomally not XX or XY. It describes the variations of 'sex' along a scale that has ending points of male and female.

That's the most democratic answer I can give, but Intersexuality gets much more complicated when the ideas of gender and identity are introduced. Intersexuality is the biological manifestation of the confusion that I think that many people in the transgendered community confront (and let's face it anyone who's felt a conflict with social constrictions that cannot fit the variations of how they identify in terms of gender or sexual orientation).

Answer 5

Mostly tragic.

I would like to elaborate now that I've got more time.
Just imagine a person who was determined to be male at birth.
All through this person's childhood, youth and young adulthood there is a struggle with identity. "He" feels "himself" not to be quite right. Eventually he finds relief in crossdressing. He falls in love and marries. One day his wife catches him crossdressed. He explains that he has a deep and fundamental need to do this. They agree that he should crossdress at weekends. This is okay until there is a crisis. This person makes a serious attempt at suicide. While in hospital he is given a thorough physical exam. During this exam the doctors discover that "he" is in the possession of a full set of atrophied ovaries and a vestigial womb.
Armed with this knowledge "he" transitions and henceforth goes through life as a woman. Alas her exposure to testostorone almost into middle age has given her a masculine jawline, big hands, broad shoulders, and made her well over six feet tall.
She is a woman, but hardly measures up to our society's expectations regarding female appearance.
Greater responsiveness by the medical profession in childhood and puberty could have stopped her body being flooded with testosterone and given her a chance of more satisfactory life.

This is a true story.

Answer 6

both sexes are apparent on aperson. they must decide which sex is their sex for life and through surgery complete their needs as well.