Hermaphrodites with Attitude

Last updated
Hermaphrodites with Attitude
Editor Cheryl Chase
Categories Intersex human rights, reproductive and sexual health
Publisher Intersex Society of North America
First issue1994
Final issue2005
CountryUnited States
Website www.isna.org/library/hwa
ISSN 1084-5771
OCLC 33093388

Hermaphrodites with Attitude was a newsletter edited by Cheryl Chase and published by the Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) between 1994 and 2005. [1] The full archives are available online. In 2008, ISNA transferred its remaining funds, assets, and copyrights to Accord Alliance and then closed.

Contents

History

Hermaphrodites with Attitude was published on thirteen occasions over an eleven-year period. The first issue appeared in Winter 1994, comprising 6 pages of articles, analysis and case studies, including articles by people with lived experience, activists, physicians, and academics. It was distributed to subscribers in five countries and 14 States of the United States. [2]

The newsletter provided a voice for intersex activists for the first time, becoming a resource for intersex people and academics. [3] [4] The title of the newsletter appears in the title of multiple articles describing the intersex movement, [5] [6] [7] and was also displayed on banners at the first public demonstration by intersex people and allies, outside a pediatric conference in Boston, on October 26, 1996. [8] [9]

In the early part of the 21st-century, Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) took on staff for the first time and began to engage closely with the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Society, establishing a North American Task Force on Intersex. [10] These developments were stated in the newsletter's first issue of the 21st-century, in February 2001, which also marked a change in name to "ISNA News". [10]

Shifting attitudes

This shift in name of the newsletter reflected a significant shift in the goals of ISNA. Initially, Emi Koyama states that "not only did intersex activists appropriate the medical label "intersex" as part of their identities, they also liberally used the word "hermaphrodite", which is now considered offensive, for example by naming the newsletter of Intersex Society of North America "Hermaphrodites With Attitude" and demonstrating under that name." Koyama argues that the intersex movement could not succeed with that label in addressing peer support needs, while identity politics drew in a different set of goals and interests. [11] ISNA goals shifted to eradicate nomenclature based on hermaphroditism that was stated to be stigmatizing [12] to intersex individuals, as well as potentially panic-inducing to parents of intersex children.

The suggested solution put forth by ISNA was to restructure the system of intersex taxonomy and nomenclature to not include the words 'hermaphrodite', 'hermaphroditism', 'sex reversal', or other similar terms. [13] This "standard division of many intersex types into true hermaphroditism, male pseudohermaphroditism, and female pseudohermaphroditism" was described by ISNA and its advocates as confusing and clinically problematic, [13] and a replacement term, disorders of sex development was proposed by Alice Dreger, Cheryl Chase and others in 2005. [14]

ISNA itself folded in 2008, following publication of a clinical paper and new clinical standards that adopted the term disorders of sex development to replace not only hermaphroditism and associated terms, but also the term intersex, in medical settings. ISNA gave a statement saying that "at present, the new standard of care exists as little more than ideals on paper, thus falling short of its aim[s]" to fulfill its goals. [15] The ISNA decided its best course of action was to "support a new organization with a mission to promote integrated, comprehensive approaches to care that enhance the overall health and well-being of persons [who are intersex] and their families." The ISNA transferred all of its remaining funds, assets, and copyrights to Accord Alliance and then closed.

ISNA has been survived or succeeded by several intersex civil society organizations, including the AIS Support Group USA (now called AISDSD), [16] the Intersex Initiative, [17] Bodies Like Ours, [17] Organisation Intersex International, [17] (now the Intersex Campaign for Equality) and Advocates for Informed Choice (now interACT).

See also

Related Research Articles

The Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) was a non-profit advocacy group founded in 1993 by Cheryl Chase to end shame, secrecy, and unwanted genital surgeries. Other notable members included Morgan Holmes, Max Beck, Howard (Tiger) Devore, Esther Morris Leidolf and Alice Dreger. The organization closed in June 2008, and has been succeeded by a number of health, civil and human rights organizations including interACT.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of intersex surgery</span> Aspect of history

The history of intersex surgery is intertwined with the development of the specialities of pediatric surgery, pediatric urology, and pediatric endocrinology, with our increasingly refined understanding of sexual differentiation, with the development of political advocacy groups united by a human qualified analysis, and in the last decade by doubts as to efficacy, and controversy over when and even whether some procedures should be performed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheryl Chase (activist)</span> American activist

Bo Laurent, better known by her pseudonym Cheryl Chase, is an American intersex activist and the founder of the Intersex Society of North America. She began using the names Bo Laurent and Cheryl Chase simultaneously in the 1990s and changed her name legally from Bonnie Sullivan to Bo Laurent in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">True hermaphroditism</span> Intersex condition including both ovarian and testicular tissue

True hermaphroditism, sometimes referred to as ovotesticular syndrome, is an outdated term for an intersex condition in which an individual is born with both ovarian and testicular tissue. Commonly, one or both gonads is an ovotestis containing both types of tissue.

Pseudohermaphroditism is a condition in which an individual has a matching chromosomal and gonadal tissue sex, but mismatching external genitalia.

An ovotestis is a gonad with both testicular and ovarian aspects. In humans, ovotestes are an infrequent anatomical variation associated with gonadal dysgenesis. The only mammals where ovotestes are not symptomatic of an intersex variation are moles, wherein females possess ovotestes along with a masculinized clitoris. These ovotestes in nonpregnant female moles secrete eight times as much testosterone as the ovotestes of pregnant moles. In invertebrates that are normally hermaphroditic, such as most gastropods in the clade Eupulmonata, an ovotestis is a common feature of the reproductive anatomy.

LGBT movements in the United States comprise an interwoven history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and allied movements in the United States of America, beginning in the early 20th century and influential in achieving social progress for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and transsexual people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermaphrodite</span> Sexually reproducing organism that produces both male and female gametes

A hermaphrodite is a sexually reproducing organism that produces both male and female gametes. Animal species in which individuals are of different sexes, either male or female but not both, are gonochoric, which is the opposite of hermaphroditic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex</span> Atypical congenital variations of sex characteristics

Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Dreger</span> American bioethicist, historian, and author

Alice Domurat Dreger is an American historian, bioethicist, author, and former professor of clinical medical humanities and bioethics at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, in Chicago, Illinois.

Tiger Devore, previously known as Howard Devore and Tiger Howard Devore, is an American clinical psychologist, sex therapist, and spokesperson on intersex issues. He was a member of the defunct Intersex Society of North America. Historian Alice Dreger credits him with starting the work of the intersex movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Literature about intersex</span>

Intersex, in humans and other animals, describes variations in sex characteristics including chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".

The Phall-O-meter is a satirical measure that critiques medical standards for normal male and female phalluses. The tool was developed by Kiira Triea based on a concept by Suzanne Kessler and is used to demonstrate concerns with the medical treatment of intersex bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex people in history</span>

Intersex, in humans and other animals, describes variations in sex characteristics including chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies". Intersex people were historically termed hermaphrodites, "congenital eunuchs", or even congenitally "frigid". Such terms have fallen out of favor, now considered to be misleading and stigmatizing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex people and religion</span>

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".

Max Beck was an American intersex advocate, who was active in the now-defunct Intersex Society of North America (ISNA). On October 26, 1996 in Boston, Beck participated in the first known public demonstration against human rights violations on intersex people. The event is now annually commemorated and recognized as Intersex Awareness Day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex and LGBT</span> Relationship between different sex and gender minorities

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics that "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". They are substantially more likely to identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) than the non-intersex population, with an estimated 52% identifying as non-heterosexual and 8.5% to 20% experiencing gender dysphoria. Although many intersex people are heterosexual and cisgender, this overlap and "shared experiences of harm arising from dominant societal sex and gender norms" has led to intersex people often being included under the LGBT umbrella, with the acronym sometimes expanded to LGBTI. Some intersex activists and organisations have criticised this inclusion as distracting from intersex-specific issues such as involuntary medical interventions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in the United States</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in the United States of America

Intersex people in the United States have some of the same rights as other people, but with significant gaps, particularly in protection from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and violence, and protection from discrimination. Actions by intersex civil society organizations aim to eliminate harmful practices, promote social acceptance, and equality. In recent years, intersex activists have also secured some forms of legal recognition. Since April 11, 2022 US Passports give the sex/gender options of male, female and X by self determination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex people and military service</span> Minority in military service

Military service of intersex people varies greatly by country. Some armed forces such as the Australian fully embrace intersex people in modern-day while others have vague rules or policies or treat the subject on a case by case basis, such as the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States partial military ban on intersex people</span> United States military ban on some intersex people

The (DoDI) 6130.03, 2018, section 5, 13f and 14m is the writing which bars persons with "true hermaphroditism", "pseudohermaphroditism" and "pure gonadal dysgenesis" from serving in the United States Armed Forces. The three are all intersex conditions and are as of now considered to be medically incompatible with military service in the United States. "DoDI" stands for "Department of Defense Instruction," the 6130.03 instruction concerns "Medical Standards for Appointment, Enlistment, or Induction in the Military Services" in the Armed Forces of the United States. Section 5 focuses on disqualifying conditions of the male and female reproductive system, on the female page the subheader 13 and paragraph f name true hermaphroditism, pseudohermaphroditism and pure gonadal dysgenesis specifically, and on the male page the subheader 14 and paragraph m also name exactly true hermaphroditism, pseudohermaphroditism and pure gonadal dysgenesis, respectively. There is no differentiation made between males and females with these conditions. Many doctors, medical professionals and intersex advocates find the terms hermaphroditism to be outdated and stigmatized, therefore it and its derivative words are seldom used in the 2000s, with the word hermaphrodite itself being considered a slur when used against a human.

References

  1. ↑ "Hermaphrodites with Attitude". Intersex Society of North America . Retrieved 26 September 2013.
  2. ↑ "Hermaphrodites with Attitude" (PDF). Hermaphrodites with Attitude. 1 (1). 1994.
  3. ↑ Valocchi, Stephen; Corber, Robert J. (2003). Queer studies : an interdisciplinary reader. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN   0631229167.
  4. ↑ Dreger, Alice Domurat (1999). Intersex in the age of ethics . Hagerstown, MD.: Univ. Publ. Group. ISBN   1555721001.
  5. ↑ Chase, Cheryl (1998). "Hermaphrodites with Attitude: Mapping the Emergence of Intersex Political Activism". GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. 4 (2): 189–211. doi:10.1215/10642684-4-2-189.
  6. ↑ Preves, Sharon (August 16, 2003). "Hermaphrodites With Attitude: The Intersex Patients' Rights Movement and Clinical Reform". American Sociological Association.
  7. ↑ Valentine, David; Wilchins, Riki Anne (1997). "One Percent on the Burn Chart: Gender, Genitals, and Hermaphrodites with Attitude". Social Text (52/53): 215–222. doi:10.2307/466740. JSTOR   466740.
  8. ↑ Beck, Max. "Hermaphrodites with Attitude Take to the Streets". Intersex Society of North America .
  9. ↑ "Intersex Awakening". Chrysalis, the Journal of Transgressive Gender Identities. 2 (5). 1997.
  10. 1 2 "ISNA News" (PDF). ISNA News. February 2001.
  11. ↑ Koyama, Emi (February 2006). "From "Intersex" to "DSD": Toward a Queer Disability Politics of Gender". University of Vermont.
  12. ↑ "Is a person who is intersex a hermaphrodite?". Intersex Society of North America. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  13. 1 2 "Getting Rid of "Hermaphroditism" Once and For All". Intersex Society of North America. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  14. ↑ Dreger, AD; Chase, C; Sousa, A; Gruppuso, PA; Frader, J (August 2005). "Changing the nomenclature/taxonomy for intersex: a scientific and clinical rationale". Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology & Metabolism. 18 (8): 729–33. doi:10.1515/jpem.2005.18.8.729. PMID   16200837. S2CID   39459050.
  15. ↑ "Dear ISNA Friends and Supporters". Intersex Society of North America. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  16. ↑ "A Brief History". AISDSD. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  17. 1 2 3 Karkazis, Katrina (2008). Fixing Sex: Intersex, Medical Authority, and Lived Experience . Duke University Press. p. 260. ISBN   978-0-8223-4318-9.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.