Intersexuality-- Who Knew?

When reading the "Sex" portion of chapter four's "Cultural Variation and Everyday Experience," I was shocked to find that, according to the text, "... 1% of all babies born have some form of intersexuality, meaning that they are born with sexual organs that don't completely fit into the standard sex categories" (Newman 122).  I viewed several videos online in which people who identify themselves as intersexuals speak out. Even though this video is in Dutch, I think it illustrates some of the constant struggles these people face.

Even though Maya constantly struggles with her sex, I think she's had an advantage being able to choose how to identify herself.  The text talks about sexually ambiguous newborns being "assigned" genders: "About 90% are designated female because creating a vagina is considered surgically easier than creasing a penis" (Newman 122).  Some of the videos I viewed showed people who had been "assigned" a gender that felt wrong.  Choosing a gender at birth can not only cause extreme confusion, but it also limits options for possible surgeries later in life.

I can't imagine being unable to completely identify myself as one sex or the other, as being a girl is so much a part of who I am. I also can't imagine how I would have reacted had my son been born without a definite sex. What would I have told everyone in the waiting room?

I'm sure it's a complete shock to new parents, so I can understand why they would blindly follow a doctor's recommendation to assign a gender to a newborn; but hopefully increased awareness will help parents make informed decisions.

Newman, David. Sociology, Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life. Ed 8. 2010.