Pidgeon: Raise your hands if you have
testes.
All: I’m Pidgeon. I’m Alice. I’m Emily,
I’m Saifa. And we are intersexy.
Emily: Intersex describes a person
who doesn’t fit the typical definition
of male or female.
Alice: I have XY chromosomes but typical
female genitalia.
Emily: I’m a girl who has testes and
XY chromosomes.
Pidgeon: I identify as a queer, gender
non-conforming intersex person.
Saifa: I identify as a Black intersex man
Pidgeon: Intersex is not new.
It’s been around since the beginning
of human existence. I mean there was
probably even intersex dinosaurs,
if you think about it.
Emily: Transgender has to do with your
gender identity, whereas intersex
has to do with your biological
characteristics.
Saifa: Often, intersex people get
surgeries that they don’t want
and transgender people have to fight
for surgeries that they do want.
Saifa: They gave my mom the excuse that
the internal testes were cancerous,
that I would develop cancer.
Pidgeon: They didn’t even come up with an
excuse, basically, in terms of a
health-related reason. They instead just
said it was about the appearance.
Emily: A lot of doctors are very
uncomfortable with the fact that I have
that I have testes, and they are still
trying to get them removed. But I’m
perfectly healthy and there’s nothing
wrong with them.
Alice: They did a surgery to remove my
testes and told my parents to take me
home and just raise me as a girl.
I didn’t find out about it myself
until I was 12.
Saifa: There aren’t a lot of options,
or medical providers don’t explore
other options.
My mom would put me in dresses and she
would be like “Oh, aren’t you so cute”
and “You’re so pretty” and I’d be like
“No! This is horrible! Rah!” I was um,
put on hormonal treatment which
consisted of estrogen and progesterone.
I just wanted to belong. I wanted to fit
in. I didn’t want to be different. So
even though I knew something
felt amiss, I conformed.
He was very condescending, he was like
“You intersex advocates don’t know what
you’re talking about.”
Emily: It’s difficult for intersex people
to find each other because from an early
age we’re told not to talk about our
bodies.
Saifa: I did feel like I was the only
one.
Emily: My doctors always told me there
was nobody else like me and so it
perpetuates a vicious cycle of shame and
stigma that we can’t break out of.
Emily: I would tell another intersex
person that, you are worthy.
You are loveable.
Saifa: Your body is beautiful.
You’re beautiful.
Alice: Intersex people don’t need to be
fixed, there’s nothing wrong with them.
Pidgeon: I know you feel like you might
not be able get through this.
I know you might have really dark
thoughts. But I want you to know that
meeting other intersex people, and finding
a community, or a support group, can be
one of the most important aspects in your
healing process. And we’re out there.
We’re out here. We’re here.
And I just hope you can find us.