discrimination against intersex people

[[File:Inclusion of sex characteristics in anti-discrimination law.svg|thumb|right|452px|

{{legend|#002255|Explicit protection on grounds of sex characteristics}}

{{legend|#0066FF|Explicit protection on grounds of intersex status}}

{{legend|#9FCFFF|Explicit protection on grounds of intersex within attribute of sex}}]]

A 2013 first international pilot study, Human Rights between the Sexes, by Dan Christian Ghattas, found that intersex people are discriminated against worldwide: "Intersex individuals are considered individuals with a 'disorder' in all areas in which Western medicine prevails. They are more or less obviously treated as sick or 'abnormal', depending on the respective society."{{cite web | url = http://www.boell.de/sites/default/files/endf_human_rights_between_the_sexes.pdf | title = Human Rights Between the Sexes | first1 = Dan Christian | author2-link = Heinrich Böll Foundation | last1 = Ghattas | author-link1 = Dan Christian Ghattas | last2 = Heinrich Böll Foundation | date = September 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150923223221/http://www.boell.de/sites/default/files/endf_human_rights_between_the_sexes.pdf | archive-date = 2015-09-23 }}{{cite web | url = http://oiieurope.org/a-preliminary-study-on-the-life-situations-of-inter-individuals/ | title = A preliminary study on the life situations of inter* individuals | work = OII Europe | date = 4 November 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150704015158/http://oiieurope.org/a-preliminary-study-on-the-life-situations-of-inter-individuals/ | archive-date = 4 July 2015 }}

The United Nations states that intersex people suffer stigma on the basis of physical characteristics, "including violations of their rights to health and physical integrity, to be free from torture and ill-treatment, and to equality and non- discrimination." The UN has called for governments to end discrimination against intersex people:

{{Blockquote|Ban discrimination on the basis of sex characteristics, intersex traits or status, including in education, health care, employment, sports and access to public services, and consult intersex people and organizations when developing legislation and policies that impact their rights.{{cite web | title = United Nations for Intersex Awareness | url = https://www.unfe.org/intersex-awareness/ | last = Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights | author-link = Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights | access-date = 2016-11-12 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161112212215/https://www.unfe.org/intersex-awareness/ | archive-date = 2016-11-12 }}}}

A handful of jurisdictions so far provide explicit protection from discrimination for intersex people:

• South Africa was the first country to explicitly add intersex to legislation, as part of the attribute of 'sex'.{{cite web | url = http://www.justice.gov.za/legislation/acts/2005-022.pdf | title = Judicial Matters Amendment Act, No. 22 of 2005, Republic of South Africa, Vol. 487, Cape Town | date = 11 January 2006}}
• Australia was the first country to add an independent attribute, of 'intersex status'.{{cite web | url = http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2013A00098 | title = Sex Discrimination Amendment (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Intersex Status) Act 2013, No. 98, 2013, C2013A00098 | work = ComLaw | date = 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141006122244/http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2013A00098 | archive-date = 2014-10-06 }}
• Malta was the first to adopt a broader framework of "sex characteristics", through legislation that also ended modifications to the sex characteristics of minors undertaken for social and cultural reasons.{{cite web |url=http://transactivists.org/2015/04/08/making-depathologization-a-matter-of-law-a-comment-from-gate-on-the-maltese-act-on-gender-identity-gender-expression-and-sex-characteristics/ |title=Making depathologization a matter of law. A comment from GATE on the Maltese Act on Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics |last1=Cabral |first1=Mauro |author-link=Mauro Cabral |date=April 8, 2015 |publisher=Global Action for Trans Equality |access-date=2015-07-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704213308/http://transactivists.org/2015/04/08/making-depathologization-a-matter-of-law-a-comment-from-gate-on-the-maltese-act-on-gender-identity-gender-expression-and-sex-characteristics/ |archive-date=July 4, 2015 }}
• Since then, several countries in Southeastern Europe have prohibited discrimination based on sex characteristics of intersex status: Albania (since 2020),{{Cite web|title=Albania amends its Law for Protection from Discrimination: HIV status and sex characteristics are now protected grounds {{!}} LGBTI Equal Rights Association for Western Balkans and Turkey|url=https://www.lgbti-era.org/news/albania-amends-its-law-protection-discrimination-hiv-status-and-sex-characteristics-are-now|access-date=2020-11-08|website=www.lgbti-era.org|archive-date=2021-05-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503105655/https://www.lgbti-era.org/news/albania-amends-its-law-protection-discrimination-hiv-status-and-sex-characteristics-are-now|url-status=dead}} Bosnia and Herzegovina (since 2016),{{cite web|title=Anti-discrimination Law Updated in Bosnia-Herzegovina|url=http://www.ilga-europe.org/resources/news/latest-news/anti-discrimination-law-updated-bosnia-herzegovina|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808190256/http://www.ilga-europe.org/resources/news/latest-news/anti-discrimination-law-updated-bosnia-herzegovina|archive-date=2016-08-08|work=ILGA-Europe}}{{cite web|title=LGBTI people are now better protected in Bosnia and Herzegovina|url=http://www.lezbelib.com/europe-news/lgbti-people-are-now-better-protected-in-bosnia-and-herzegovina|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826022235/http://www.lezbelib.com/europe-news/lgbti-people-are-now-better-protected-in-bosnia-and-herzegovina|archive-date=2016-08-26}} Greece (since 2015),{{cite web|date=2015-12-23|script-title=el:Πρώτη φορά, ίσοι απέναντι στον νόμο|url=http://www.efsyn.gr/arthro/proti-fora-isoi-apenanti-ston-nomo|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025203410/http://www.efsyn.gr/arthro/proti-fora-isoi-apenanti-ston-nomo|archive-date=2017-10-25|language=el}} and Serbia{{cite web |url=http://xyspectrum.org/napokon-vidljivi/ |title=Napokon vidljivi |work=XY Spectrum}} (since 2021) currently prohibit discrimination based on "sex characteristics", while Montenegro prohibits discrimination based on "intersex characteristics" since 2017.{{cite web|title=Zakon o zabrani diskriminacije {{!}} Crna Gora {{!}} Paragraf Lex|url=https://www.paragraf.me/propisi-crnegore/zakon-o-zabrani-diskriminacije.html|access-date=2020-11-08|website=www.paragraf.me|at=Article 19 ("Any discrimination, unequal treatment or unequal position of a person or group of persons on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation and / or intersex characteristics is considered discrimination.")}}
• Iceland bans employment discrimination based on sex characteristics since 2018. The Netherlands (since 2019),{{cite web|last=Koninkrijksrelaties|first=Ministerie van Binnenlandse Zaken en|title=Algemene wet gelijke behandeling|url=https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0006502/2019-11-01|access-date=2020-11-08|website=wetten.overheid.nl|language=nl}}{{cite web |title=Rainbow Europe |url=https://rainbow-europe.org/#8651/0/0 |access-date=2020-11-08 |website=rainbow-europe.org}} Belgium (since 2020) and Denmark (since 2022){{Cite web|title=Rainbow Europe|url=https://rainbow-europe.org/#8630/0/0|access-date=2022-02-09|website=rainbow-europe.org}} also prohibit discrimination based on sex characteristics.
• Pakistan prohibits discrimination against intersex people (khusra) since 2018.{{cite web |title=Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018 |url=http://www.na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1528787262_286.pdf |access-date=31 March 2022 |date=2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204105950/http://www.na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1528787262_286.pdf |archive-date=4 December 2020 |url-status=dead}} India also prohibits discrimination against "person with intersex variations" since 2020.
• Since 2022, Chile is the first Latin American country that provide legal protection from discrimination based on sex characteristics.{{cite web |title=LAW NO. 21,430 ON GUARANTEES AND INTEGRAL PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS |url=https://www.diariooficial.interior.gob.cl/publicaciones/2022/03/15/43203/01/2099181.pdf |access-date=15 March 2022}}

In 2024, the United Nations Human Rights Council voted to adopt its first-ever resolution (put forward by the governments of Australia, Finland, Chile, and South Africa) to protect the rights of intersex people.{{Cite web |date=2024-04-04 |title=U.N. rights body adopts first resolution to protect rights of intersex people |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/un-rights-body-adopts-first-resolution-protect-rights-intersex-people-rcna146374 |access-date=2024-04-24 |website=NBC News |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Gleeson |first=Cailey |title=UN Human Rights Council Passes Landmark Resolution Protecting Rights Of Intersex People |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/04/04/un-human-rights-council-passes-landmark-resolution-protecting-rights-of-intersex-people/ |access-date=2024-04-24 |website=Forbes |language=en}} The resolution, titled, "Combating discrimination, violence and harmful practices against intersex persons", calls for member states to:

Enhance efforts to combat discrimination, violence and harmful practices against persons with innate variations in sex characteristics and address their root causes, such as stereotypes, the spread of misconceptions and inaccurate information, stigma and taboo, and to work to realize the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health for persons with innate variations in sex characteristics.{{Cite web |date=21 March 2024 |title=Combating discrimination, violence and harmful practices against intersex persons |url=https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/ltd/g24/048/06/pdf/g2404806.pdf?token=i6t25vXZXMFotlAYcC&fe=true }}

{{Further|Genetic diagnosis of intersex}}

Intersex people face genetic de-selection via pregnancy terminations and preimplantation genetic diagnosis, as well as abandonment, neglect, infanticide and murder due to their sex characteristics. In 2015, the Council of Europe published an Issue Paper on Human rights and intersex people, remarking:

{{Blockquote|Intersex people's right to life can be violated in discriminatory "sex selection" and "preimplantation genetic diagnosis, other forms of testing, and selection for particular characteristics". Such de-selection or selective abortions are incompatible with ethics and human rights standards due to the discrimination perpetrated against intersex people on the basis of their sex characteristics.{{Citation| last1 = Council of Europe| last2 = Commissioner for Human Rights| title = Human rights and intersex people, Issue Paper| date = April 2015| url = https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?Ref=CommDH/IssuePaper(2015)1&Language=lanEnglish&Ver=original| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160106203349/https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?Ref=CommDH%2FIssuePaper%282015%291&Language=lanEnglish&Ver=original| archive-date = 2016-01-06| author1-link = Council of Europe}}}}

In 2015, Chinese news reported a case of abandonment of an infant, thought likely due to its sex characteristics.{{Cite web| last = Lau| first = Mimi| title = Baby born with male and female genitals found abandoned in Chinese park| work = South China Morning Post| access-date = 2016-11-11| date = August 24, 2015| url = http://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/1851891/baby-born-male-and-female-genitals-found-abandoned-chinese-park| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161112142436/http://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/1851891/baby-born-male-and-female-genitals-found-abandoned-chinese-park| archive-date = November 12, 2016}} Hong Kong activist Small Luk reports that this is not uncommon, in part due to the historic imposition of a policy of one child per family.{{Citation| publisher = Intersex Day| last = Luk| first = Small| author-link = Small Luk| title = Beyond boundaries: intersex in Hong Kong and China| date = October 20, 2015| url = http://intersexday.org/en/beyond-boundaries-intersex-hk-china/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160405140909/http://intersexday.org/en/beyond-boundaries-intersex-hk-china/| archive-date = April 5, 2016}} Cases of infanticide, attempted infanticide, and neglect have been reported in China,{{Cite news| last = Free Press Journal Bureau| title = Terming intersex baby a 'monster', father attempts to murder| work = Free Press Journal| date = June 22, 2016| url = http://www.freepressjournal.in/world/terming-intersex-baby-a-monster-father-attempts-to-murder/876019| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161112205236/http://www.freepressjournal.in/world/terming-intersex-baby-a-monster-father-attempts-to-murder/876019| archive-date = November 12, 2016}} Uganda{{Cite web| last = Richter| first = Ruthann| title = In Uganda, offering support for those born with indeterminate sex| work = Stanford Medicine| date = March 4, 2014| url = http://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2014/03/04/in-uganda-offering-support-for-those-born-with-indeterminate-sex/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150730131438/http://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2014/03/04/in-uganda-offering-support-for-those-born-with-indeterminate-sex/| archive-date = July 30, 2015}}{{Cite web| last = Kaggwa| first = Julius| author-link = Julius Kaggwa| title = Understanding intersex stigma in Uganda| work = Intersex Day| access-date = 2016-10-17| date = 2016-10-09| url = http://intersexday.org/en/understanding-stigma-uganda/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170408064123/http://intersexday.org/en/understanding-stigma-uganda/| archive-date = 2017-04-08}} and Pakistan.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1007/s11154-008-9084-2| issn = 1389-9155| volume = 9| issue = 3| pages = 227–236| last1 = Warne| first1 = Garry L.| last2 = Raza| first2 = Jamal| title = Disorders of sex development (DSDs), their presentation and management in different cultures| journal = Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders| date = September 2008| pmid=18633712| citeseerx = 10.1.1.469.9016| s2cid = 8897416}}

Kenyan reports suggest that the birth of an intersex infant may be viewed as a curse.{{Cite web| last = Odhiambo| first = Rhoda| title = Kenya to mark international intersex day next week| work = The Star, Kenya| access-date = 2016-11-11| date = October 20, 2016| url = http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016/10/20/kenya-to-mark-international-intersex-day-next-week_c1441157| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170511144918/http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016/10/20/kenya-to-mark-international-intersex-day-next-week_c1441157| archive-date = May 11, 2017}} In 2015, it was reported that an intersex Kenyan adolescent, Muhadh Ishmael, was mutilated and later died. Ishmael had previously been described as a curse on his family.{{Cite web| last = Odero| first = Joseph| title = Intersex in Kenya: Held captive, beaten, hacked. Dead.| work = 76 CRIMES| access-date = 2016-10-01| date = December 23, 2015| url = http://76crimes.com/2015/12/23/intersex-in-kenya-held-captive-beaten-hacked-dead/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160425162007/https://76crimes.com/2015/12/23/intersex-in-kenya-held-captive-beaten-hacked-dead/| archive-date = April 25, 2016}}

{{Further|Intersex medical interventions}}

In places with accessible healthcare systems, intersex people face harmful practices including involuntary or coercive treatment, and in places without such systems, infanticide, abandonment and mutilation may occur.

Intersex people face involuntary or coerced medical treatment from infancy. Where these occur without personal informed consent, these are "violations of their rights to health and physical integrity, to be free from torture and ill-treatment, and to equality and non-discrimination."{{Citation| last = Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights| title = Intersex Awareness Day – Wednesday 26 October. End violence and harmful medical practices on intersex children and adults, UN and regional experts urge| date = October 24, 2016| url = http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20739&LangID=E| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161121185256/http://ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20739&LangID=E| archive-date = November 21, 2016}}

A 2016 Australian study of 272 people born with atypical sex characteristics found that 60% had received medical treatment on the basis of their sex characteristics, half receiving such treatments aged under 18 years, "most commonly genital surgeries (many of which occurred in infancy) and hormone treatments", and the "majority experienced at least one negative impact".{{cite web | title = Demographics | url = https://oii.org.au/demographics/ | last = Organisation Intersex International Australia | author-link = Organisation Intersex International Australia | date = July 28, 2016 | access-date = 2016-11-12 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161001215740/https://oii.org.au/demographics/ | archive-date = October 1, 2016 }} Overall, while some parents and physicians had attempted to empower participants, the study found "strong evidence suggesting a pattern of institutionalised shaming and coercive treatment" and poor (or no) information provision. 16% of study participants were not provided with information on options of having no treatment, and some were provided with misinformation about the nature of their treatment, and information about peer support was also lacking. OII Europe reports:

{{Blockquote|A German study conducted by a medical team between 2005 and 2007 covered the experiences of 439 intersex individuals of all ages, from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. 81% had been subjected to one or multiple surgeries due to their DSD diagnosis. Almost 50% of the participating adults reported psychological problems and a variety of problems related to their physical well-being and their sex life. Two-thirds made a connection between those problems and the medical and surgical treatment they had been subjected to. Participating children reported significant disturbances, especially within their family life and in relation with their physical well-being.{{cite web | url = http://www.ilga-europe.org/sites/default/files/how_to_be_a_great_intersex_ally_a_toolkit_for_ngos_and_decision_makers_december_2015_updated.pdf | title = Standing up for the human rights of intersex people – how can you help? | last1 = Ghattas | first1 = Dan Christian | author2-link = ILGA-Europe | author-link1 = Dan Christian Ghattas | last2 = ILGA-Europe | date = 2016 | url-status=live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160327095320/http://www.ilga-europe.org/sites/default/files/how_to_be_a_great_intersex_ally_a_toolkit_for_ngos_and_decision_makers_december_2015_updated.pdf | archive-date = 2016-03-27 }}}}

Rationales for medical intervention frequently focus on parental distress, or problematize future gender identity and sexuality, and subjective judgements are made about the acceptability of risk of future gender dysphoria.{{cite journal | author = Furtado P. S.| year = 2012 | title = Gender dysphoria associated with disorders of sex development | journal = Nat. Rev. Urol. | volume = 9 | issue = 11| pages = 620–627 | doi = 10.1038/nrurol.2012.182 | pmid = 23045263 | s2cid = 22294512 |display-authors=etal}} Medical professionals have traditionally considered the worst outcomes after genital reconstruction in infancy to occur when the person develops a gender identity discordant with the sex assigned as an infant. Human rights institutions question such approaches as being "informed by redundant social constructs around gender and biology".{{Cite book | isbn = 978-1-921449-71-0| publisher= Australian Human Rights Commission| title = Resilient Individuals: Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity & Intersex Rights| location = Sydney| date = June 2015| url = https://www.humanrights.gov.au/our-work/sexual-orientation-sex-gender-identity/publications/resilient-individuals-sexual| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150703020250/http://www.humanrights.gov.au/our-work/sexual-orientation-sex-gender-identity/publications/resilient-individuals-sexual| archive-date = 2015-07-03}}

Decision-making on any cancer and other physical risks may be intertwined with "normalizing" rationales. In a major Parliamentary report in Australia, published in October 2013, the Senate Community Affairs References committee was "disturbed" by the possible implications of current practices in the treatment of cancer risk. The committee stated: "clinical intervention pathways stated to be based on probabilities of cancer risk may be encapsulating treatment decisions based on other factors, such as the desire to conduct normalising surgery... Treating cancer may be regarded as unambiguously therapeutic treatment, while normalising surgery may not. Thus basing a decision on cancer risk might avoid the need for court oversight in a way that a decision based on other factors might not. The committee is disturbed by the possible implications of this..."

Despite the naming of clinician statements as "consensus" statements, there remains no clinical consensus about the conduct of surgical interventions, nor their evidence base, surgical timing, necessity, type of surgical intervention, and degree of difference warranting intervention.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1016/j.jpurol.2016.04.001| pmid = 27132944| issn = 1477-5131| last1 = Mouriquand| first1 = Pierre D. E.| last2 = Gorduza| first2 = Daniela Brindusa| last3 = Gay| first3 = Claire-Lise| last4 = Meyer-Bahlburg| first4 = Heino F. L.| last5 = Baker| first5 = Linda| last6 = Baskin| first6 = Laurence S.| last7 = Bouvattier| first7 = Claire| last8 = Braga| first8 = Luis H.| last9 = Caldamone| first9 = Anthony C.| last10 = Duranteau| first10 = Lise| last11 = El Ghoneimi| first11 = Alaa| last12 = Hensle| first12 = Terry W.| last13 = Hoebeke| first13 = Piet| last14 = Kaefer| first14 = Martin| last15 = Kalfa| first15 = Nicolas| last16 = Kolon| first16 = Thomas F.| last17 = Manzoni| first17 = Gianantonio| last18 = Mure| first18 = Pierre-Yves| last19 = Nordenskjöld| first19 = Agneta| last20 = Pippi Salle| first20 = J. L.| last21 = Poppas| first21 = Dix Phillip| last22 = Ransley| first22 = Philip G.| last23 = Rink| first23 = Richard C.| last24 = Rodrigo| first24 = Romao| last25 = Sann| first25 = Léon| last26 = Schober| first26 = Justine| last27 = Sibai| first27 = Hisham| last28 = Wisniewski| first28 = Amy| last29 = Wolffenbuttel| first29 = Katja P.| last30 = Lee| first30 = Peter| title = Surgery in disorders of sex development (DSD) with a gender issue: If (why), when, and how?| journal = Journal of Pediatric Urology| volume=12| issue = 3| pages=139–149| year = 2016| doi-access = free}}{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1159/000442975| pmid = 26820577| issn = 1663-2818| volume = 85| issue = 3| last1 = Lee| first1 = Peter A.| last2 = Nordenström| first2 = Anna| last3 = Houk| first3 = Christopher P.| last4 = Ahmed| first4 = S. Faisal| last5 = Auchus| first5 = Richard| last6 = Baratz| first6 = Arlene| last7 = Baratz Dalke| first7 = Katharine| last8 = Liao| first8 = Lih-Mei| last9 = Lin-Su| first9 = Karen| last10 = Looijenga| first10 = Leendert H.J.| last11 = Mazur| first11 = Tom| last12 = Meyer-Bahlburg| first12 = Heino F.L.| last13 = Mouriquand| first13 = Pierre| last14 = Quigley| first14 = Charmian A.| last15 = Sandberg| first15 = David E.| last16 = Vilain| first16 = Eric| last17 = Witchel| first17 = Selma| last18 = and the Global DSD Update Consortium| author12-link = Heino Meyer-Bahlburg | title = Global Disorders of Sex Development Update since 2006: Perceptions, Approach and Care| journal = Hormone Research in Paediatrics| date = 2016-01-28| pages=158–180| doi-access = free}}{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1080/19419899.2013.831214| issn = 1941-9899| volume = 5| issue = 1| pages = 34–43| last1 = Creighton| first1 = Sarah M.| last2 = Michala| first2 = Lina| last3 = Mushtaq| first3 = Imran| last4 = Yaron| first4 = Michal| title = Childhood surgery for ambiguous genitalia: glimpses of practice changes or more of the same?| journal = Psychology and Sexuality| date = January 2, 2014| url = http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1415959/1/Creighton_Childhood_surgery.pdf| doi-access = free}} Surgery may adversely impact physical sensation and capacity for intimacy;{{Cite book | editor1-first = Mauro | editor1-last = Cabral | editor2-first = Morgan | editor2-last = Carpenter | editor1-link = Mauro Cabral Grinspan | editor2-link = Morgan Carpenter | title = Intersex Issues in the International Classification of Diseases: a revision | date = 2014 | url = http://intersexday.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/intersex_issues_in_the_international_classification_of_diseases-cabral-carpenter-2014.pdf | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160811041824/http://intersexday.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/intersex_issues_in_the_international_classification_of_diseases-cabral-carpenter-2014.pdf | archive-date = 2016-08-11 }} however, research has suggested that parents are willing to consent to appearance-altering surgeries even at the cost of later adult sexual sensation.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1097/01.ju.0000138519.12573.3a| pmid = 15371809| issn = 0022-5347| volume = 172| issue = 4| pages = 1762–1765| last1 = Dayner| first1 = Jennifer E.| last2 = Lee| first2 = Peter A.| last3 = Houk| first3 = Christopher P.| title = Medical Treatment of Intersex: Parental Perspectives| journal = The Journal of Urology| date = October 2004 }} Other research shows that parents may make different choices with non-medicalized information.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1111/jsm.12214| pmid = 23742202| issn = 1743-6095| volume = 10| issue = 8| pages = 1953–1960| last1 = Streuli| first1 = Jürg C.| last2 = Vayena| first2 = Effy| author-link2=Effy Vayena|last3 = Cavicchia-Balmer| first3 = Yvonne| last4 = Huber| first4 = Johannes| title = Shaping Parents: Impact of Contrasting Professional Counseling on Parents' Decision Making for Children with Disorders of Sex Development| journal = The Journal of Sexual Medicine| date = August 2013 }} Child rights experts suggest that parents have no right to consent to such treatments.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1080/18918131.2015.1128701| issn = 1891-8131| volume = 33| issue = 4| pages = 337–352| last = Sandberg| first = Kirsten| author-link = Kirsten Sandberg | title = The Rights of LGBTI Children under the Convention on the Rights of the Child| journal = Nordic Journal of Human Rights| date = October 2015| s2cid = 147310957}}

Clinical decision-making is frequently portrayed as a choice between early or later surgical interventions, while human rights advocates and some clinicians portray concerns as matters of consent and autonomy.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1016/j.jpurol.2014.03.019| issn = 1477-5131| volume = 10| issue = 4| pages = 788–789| last = Tamar-Mattis| first = A.| author-link = Anne Tamar-Mattis | title = Patient advocate responds to DSD surgery debate| journal = Journal of Pediatric Urology| date = August 2014 | pmid=24909610}}

Photographs of intersex children's genitalia are circulated in medical communities for documentary purposes, and individuals with intersex traits may be subjected to repeated genital examinations and display to medical teams. Sharon Preves described this as a form of humiliation and stigmatization, leading to an "inability to deflect negative associations of self" where "genitalia must be revealed in order to allow for stigmatization".{{cite journal|last=Preves|first=Sharon Elaine|title=Negotiating the Constraints of Gender Binarism: Intersexuals' Challenge to Gender Categorization|journal=Current Sociology|date=July 2000|volume=48|issue=3|pages=27–50|doi=10.1177/0011392100048003004|s2cid=144785585 }}{{Cite book| last = Preves| first = Sharon| title = Intersex and Identity, the Contested Self| year = 2003| publisher = Rutgers| isbn = 978-0-8135-3229-5}} p. 72. According to Creighton et al, the "experience of being photographed has exemplified for many people with intersex conditions the powerlessness and humiliation felt during medical investigations and interventions".{{Cite news| last1 = Creighton| first1 = Sarah| last2 = Alderson| first2 = J| last3 = Brown| first3 = S| last4 = Minto| first4 = Cathy| year = 2002| title = Medical photography: ethics, consent and the intersex patient|periodical = BJU International| issue = 89| pages = 67–71| url = http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/118927929/PDFSTART?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0}}{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}p. 70.

Adults with intersex variations report poor mental health due to experiences of medicalization,{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1080/19419899.2013.831217| issn = 1941-9899| volume = 5| issue = 1| pages = 83–101| last1 = Liao| first1 = Lih-Mei| last2 = Simmonds| first2 = Margaret| title = A values-driven and evidence-based health care psychology for diverse sex development| journal = Psychology & Sexuality| date = 2013| doi-access = free}} with many individuals avoiding care as a result. Many Australian study participants stated a need to educate their physicians. Similar reports are made elsewhere: reports on the situation in Mexico suggests that adults may not receive adequate care, including lack of understanding about intersex bodies and examinations that cause physical harm.{{Cite journal| volume = 5| issue = 2| pages = 95–98| last = Inter| first = Laura| title = Finding My Compass| journal = Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics| date = 2015| doi=10.1353/nib.2015.0039| pmid = 26300133| s2cid = 20101103}}{{Cite web| last = Inter| first = Laura| title = The situation of the intersex community in Mexico| work = Intersex Day| access-date = 2016-11-12| date = October 3, 2016| url = http://intersexday.org/en/situation-mexico/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170523214331/http://intersexday.org/en/situation-mexico/| archive-date = May 23, 2017}}

In countries without accessible healthcare systems, infanticide, abandonment and mutilation may occur.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1016/j.rhm.2016.06.003| pmid = 27578341| issn = 0968-8080| volume = 24| issue = 47| pages = 74–84| last = Carpenter| first = Morgan| author-link = Morgan Carpenter | title = The human rights of intersex people: addressing harmful practices and rhetoric of change| journal = Reproductive Health Matters| date = May 2016| doi-access = free}} Access to necessary medical services, for example due to cancer or urinary issues, is also limited.{{Cite book| last = Regmi| first = Esan| title = Stories of Intersex People from Nepal| location = Kathmandu| date = 2016| url = http://intersexday.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Intersex-Stories-in-Nepal.pdf| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161113175807/http://intersexday.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Intersex-Stories-in-Nepal.pdf| archive-date = 2016-11-13}}

One increasingly common cause of hate crimes against intersex people is the neurological claim that male and female brains have fundamentally different sexualities, in particular the claim that men are sexually impulsive and aggressive and bound to act on their sexual fantasies while most women are said to have a wider range of sexual fantasies than most men, including fantasies that it would be unacceptable to act on. The claim that a combination of one trait that most men have and one trait that most women have would produce a sex criminal adds up to allegations that intersex people are sex offenders. To decrease such severe discrimination against intersex people, some researchers advocate more public information about the error sources in the sexological studies that are said to show such sex differences. This includes the possibility that societal double standards may scare more men than women into not talking about or otherwise revealing their sex fantasies (corroborated by the existence of characteristics that differ between male volunteers and male nonvolunteers, but not between female volunteers and female nonvolunteers, in erotica research) giving a false appearance of men having narrower ranges of sexual fantasies than women, and the possibility that men who want to be castrated out of their spiritual beliefs may have to commit sex crimes and claim that it was due to uncontrollable urges to get castrated since such surgery is not off the shelf (corroborated by the overrepresentation of religious groups in child sexual abuse scandals that cannot be explained by biopsychiatric correlations) creating a false appearance of men being less able to control their sexual impulses than women. Certain intersex rights advocates argue that this may dispel the myth that intersex people are "hybrid degenerated" to be sex criminals, creating more understanding for intersex people.Trans and Intersex People: Discrimination on the Grounds of Sex, Gender Identity and Gender Expression, 2012, Christa Tobler and Silvan AgiusHuman Rights Between the Sexes: A Preliminary Study on the Life Situations of Inter*individuals, 2013, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

The impact of discrimination and stigma can also be seen in high rates of suicidal tendencies and self harm. Multiple anecdotal reports, including from Hong Kong and Kenya point to high levels of suicidality amongst intersex people. The Australian sociological study of 272 people born with atypical sex characteristics found that 60% had thought about suicide, and 42% thought about self-harm, "on the basis of issues related to having an intersex variation ... 19% had attempted suicide"; causes identified included stigma, discrimination, family rejection and school bullying. Similarly, data from Mexico found higher rate of suicidal ideation and intention among intersex individuals. {{citation |last1=Muñoz |first1=Ercio |last2=Saavedra |first2=Melanie |last3=Sansone |first3=Dario |title=The Lives of Intersex People: Socio-Economic and Health Disparities in Mexico |date=19 April 2025 |doi=10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf126 | url=https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/advance-article/doi/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf126/8116429|hdl=10419/300963 |hdl-access=free }}

A 2013 German clinical study found high rates of distress, with "prevalence rates of self-harming behavior and suicidal tendencies ... comparable to traumatized women with a history of physical or sexual abuse."{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1007/s10508-007-9241-9| issn = 0004-0002| volume = 38| issue = 1| pages = 16–33| last1 = Schützmann| first1 = Karsten| last2 = Brinkmann| first2 = Lisa| last3 = Schacht| first3 = Melanie| last4 = Richter-Appelt| first4 = Hertha| title = Psychological Distress, Self-Harming Behavior, and Suicidal Tendencies in Adults with Disorders of Sex Development| journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior| date = February 2009 | pmid=17943433| s2cid = 30380900}} Similar results have been reported in Australia and Denmark.

An Australian sociological survey of 272 persons born with atypical sex characteristics, published in 2016, found that 18% of respondents (compared to an Australian average of 2%) failed to complete secondary school, with early school leaving coincident with pubertal medical interventions, bullying on the basis of physical characteristics, and other factors.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1080/14681811.2016.1149808| issn = 1468-1811 | pages = 602–618| last = Jones| first = Tiffany| title = The needs of students with intersex variations| journal = Sex Education| volume = 16 | issue = 6 | date = March 11, 2016 | s2cid = 74173324 }} A Kenyan news report suggests high rates of early school leaving, with the organisation Gama Africa reporting that 60% of 132 known intersex people had dropped out of school "because of the harassment and treatment they received from their peers and their teachers".

The Australian study found that schools lacked inclusive services such as relevant puberty and sex education curricula and counselling, for example, not representing a full range of human bodily diversity. Only a quarter of respondents felt positive about their schooling experiences, schooling coincided with disclosure of an intersex condition, associated with well-being risks, and early school leaving peaked "during the years most associated with puberty and hormone therapy interventions". Cognitive differences may also be associated with some traits such as sex chromosome variations.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2790-13.2014| issn = 0270-6474| volume = 34| issue = 10| pages = 3509–3516| last1 = Hong| first1 = D. S.| last2 = Hoeft| first2 = F.| last3 = Marzelli| first3 = M. J.| last4 = Lepage| first4 = J.-F.| last5 = Roeltgen| first5 = D.| last6 = Ross| first6 = J.| last7 = Reiss| first7 = A. L.| title = Influence of the X-Chromosome on Neuroanatomy: Evidence from Turner and Klinefelter Syndromes| journal = Journal of Neuroscience| date = March 5, 2014 | pmid=24599451| pmc=3942570}} Nevertheless, in addition to very high rates of early school leaving, the Australian study also found that a higher proportion of study participants completed undergraduate or postgraduate degrees compared to the general Australian population.

The impact of discrimination and stigma can be seen in high rates of poverty. A 2015 Australian survey of people born with atypical sex characteristics found high levels of poverty, in addition to very high levels of early school leaving, and higher than average rates of disability.{{Cite book| publisher = Open Book Publishers| isbn = 978-1-78374-208-0| last1 = Jones| first1 = Tiffany| last2 = Hart| first2 = Bonnie| last3 = Carpenter| first3 = Morgan| last4 = Ansara| first4 = Gavi| last5 = Leonard| first5 = William| last6 = Lucke| first6 = Jayne| title = Intersex: Stories and Statistics from Australia| location = Cambridge, UK| access-date = 2016-02-02| date = February 2016| url = http://oii.org.au/wp-content/uploads/key/Intersex-Stories-Statistics-Australia.pdf| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160914152729/http://oii.org.au/wp-content/uploads/key/Intersex-Stories-Statistics-Australia.pdf| archive-date = 2016-09-14}} 6% of the 272 survey participants reported being homeless or couch surfing.

OII Europe states that "stigma, structural and verbal discrimination, harassment" as well as harmful practices and lack of legal recognition can lead to "inadequate education, broken careers and poverty (including homelessness) due to pathologisation and related trauma, a disturbed family life due to taboo and medicalisation, lack of self-esteem and a high risk of becoming suicidal."{{cite web | url = http://intervisibility.eu | title = European Intersex Visibility Works! | last = OII Europe | author-link = OII Europe | access-date = 2016-11-12 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161114001648/http://intervisibility.eu/ | archive-date = 2016-11-14 }}

An Employers guide to intersex inclusion published by Pride in Diversity and Organisation Intersex International Australia discloses cases of discrimination in employment.{{Cite book| publisher = Pride in Diversity and Organisation Intersex International Australia| isbn = 978-0-646-92905-7| last1 = Carpenter| first1 = Morgan| last2 = Hough| first2 = Dawn| author1-link = Morgan Carpenter| title = Employers' Guide to Intersex Inclusion| location = Sydney, Australia| date = 2014| url = http://oii.org.au/employer| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160425044934/https://oii.org.au/employer/| archive-date = 2016-04-25}} Researchers have also documented frequent experiences of workplaces rejection among intersex individuals in Mexico, including social exclusion, offensive comments, harassment, unequal treatment, and violence. {{citation |last1=Muñoz |first1=Ercio |last2=Saavedra |first2=Melanie |last3=Sansone |first3=Dario |title=The Lives of Intersex People: Socio-Economic and Health Disparities in Mexico |date=19 April 2025 |doi=10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf126 | url=https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/advance-article/doi/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf126/8116429|hdl=10419/300963 |hdl-access=free }}

{{Main|Legal recognition of intersex people}}

{{Distinguish|Discrimination towards non-binary gender persons}}

Like all individuals, some intersex individuals may be raised as a particular sex (male or female) but then identify with another later in life, while most do not.{{cite book |last1=Money |first1=John |author2=Ehrhardt, Anke A. |author1-link=John Money |title=Man & Woman Boy & Girl. Differentiation and dimorphism of gender identity from conception to maturity |year=1972 |publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press |location=US |isbn=978-0-8018-1405-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/manwomanboygirl00mone }}{{cite book |last=Domurat Dreger |first=Alice |author-link = Alice Dreger | title=Hermaphrodites and the Medical Invention of Sex |year=2001 |publisher=Harvard University Press |location=US |isbn=978-0-674-00189-3 }}{{cite book |last=Marañón |first=Gregorio |title=Los estados intersexuales en la especie humana |year=1929 |publisher=Morata |location=Madrid }} Like non-intersex people, some intersex individuals may not identify themselves as either exclusively female or exclusively male. A 2012 clinical review suggests that between 8.5 and 20% of persons with intersex conditions may experience gender dysphoria, while sociological research in Australia, a country with a third 'X' sex classification, shows that 19% of people born with atypical sex characteristics selected an "X" or "other" option, while 52% are women, 23% men and 6% unsure.

Depending on the jurisdiction, access to any birth certificate may be an issue,{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-kenya-intersex-idUSKCN0JJ1M120141205|title=Kenya takes step toward recognizing intersex people in landmark ruling|newspaper=Reuters|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924211232/http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/05/us-kenya-intersex-idUSKCN0JJ1M120141205|archive-date=2015-09-24|date=2014-12-05}} including a birth certificate with a sex marker.{{cite web | url = http://www.advocate.com/commentary/2013/11/06/op-ed-germany’s-third-gender-law-fails-equality | first = Hida | last = Viloria | author-link = Hida Viloria | work = The Advocate | title = Op-ed: Germany's Third-Gender Law Fails on Equality | date = November 6, 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170103013558/http://www.advocate.com/commentary/2013/11/06/op-ed-germany%E2%80%99s-third-gender-law-fails-equality | archive-date = January 3, 2017 }} The Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions states that:

{{Blockquote|Recognition before the law means having legal personhood and the legal protections that flow from that. For intersex people, this is neither primarily nor solely about amending birth registrations or other official documents. Firstly, it is about intersex people who have been issued a male or a female birth certificate being able to enjoy the same legal rights as other men and women}}

Access to a birth certificate with a correct sex marker may be an issue for people who do not identify with their sex assigned at birth, or it may only be available accompanied by surgical requirements.{{Cite book| isbn = 978-0-9942513-7-4| last = Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions| author-link = Asia Pacific Forum| title = Promoting and Protecting Human Rights in relation to Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Sex Characteristics| date = June 2016| url = http://www.asiapacificforum.net/resources/manual-sogi-and-sex-charactersitics/| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170115144950/http://www.asiapacificforum.net/resources/manual-sogi-and-sex-charactersitics/| archive-date = 2017-01-15}}

The passports and identification documents of Australia and some other nationalities have adopted "X" as a valid third category besides "M" (male) and "F" (female), at least since 2003.{{cite journal | first = Ingrid | last = Holme | title = Hearing People's Own Stories | journal = Science as Culture | volume = 17 | issue = 3 | doi = 10.1080/09505430802280784 | date = 2008 | pages = 341–344 | s2cid = 143528047 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.passports.govt.nz/Transgender-applicants|title=New Zealand Passports - Information about Changing Sex / Gender Identity|access-date=6 October 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140923055123/http://www.passports.govt.nz/Transgender-applicants|archive-date=23 September 2014}} In 2013, Germany became the first European nation to allow babies with characteristics of both sexes to be registered as indeterminate gender on birth certificates, amidst opposition and skepticism from intersex organisations who point out that the law appears to mandate exclusion from male or female categories.{{cite web | url = http://www.dw.de/third-sex-option-on-birth-certificates/a-17193869 | title = Third sex option on birth certificates | work = Deutsche Welle | date = 1 November 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141010184218/http://www.dw.de/third-sex-option-on-birth-certificates/a-17193869 | archive-date = 10 October 2014 }}{{cite web | url = http://oiieurope.org/bluff-package-for-inter-leaving-sex-entry-open-is-not-an-option/ | title = Sham package for Intersex: Leaving sex entry open is not an option | work = OII Europe | date = 15 February 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140829115843/http://oiieurope.org/bluff-package-for-inter-leaving-sex-entry-open-is-not-an-option/ | archive-date = 29 August 2014 }} The Council of Europe acknowledged this approach, and concerns about recognition of third and blank classifications in a 2015 Issue Paper, stating that these may lead to "forced outings" and "lead to an increase in pressure on parents of intersex children to decide in favour of one sex." The Issue Paper argues that "further reflection on non-binary legal identification is necessary".

{{Main|Sex verification in sports}}

Women who have, or are perceived to have intersex traits are subject to stigmatization, humiliation and trial by media.{{Cite news| issn = 0261-3077| last = Karkazis| first = Katrina| author-link = Katrina Karkazis| title = The ignorance aimed at Caster Semenya flies in the face of the Olympic spirit| work =The Guardian| access-date = 2016-11-11| date = August 23, 2016| url = https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/23/caster-semenya-olympic-spirit-iaaf-athletes-women| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160915093039/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/23/caster-semenya-olympic-spirit-iaaf-athletes-women| archive-date = September 15, 2016}}{{cite news|last1=Macur|first1=Juliet|title=Fighting for the Body She Was Born With|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/sports/sprinter-dutee-chand-fights-ban-over-her-testosterone-level.html|access-date=9 February 2015|work=The New York Times|date=6 October 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150112141415/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/sports/sprinter-dutee-chand-fights-ban-over-her-testosterone-level.html|archive-date=12 January 2015}} Currently suspended IAAF regulations on hyperandrogenism "mandated that national Olympic committees 'actively investigate any perceived deviation in sex characteristics'" in women athletes.

In 2013, it was disclosed in a medical journal that four unnamed elite female athletes from developing countries were subjected to gonadectomies (sterilization) and partial clitoridectomies (female genital mutilation) after testosterone testing revealed that they had an intersex condition. Testosterone testing was introduced in the wake of the Caster Semenya case, of a South African runner subjected to testing due to her appearance and vigor.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1136/bmj.g2926| issn = 1756-1833| volume = 348| issue = apr28 9| pages = –2926–g2926| last1 = Jordan-Young| first1 = R. M.| last2 = Sonksen| first2 = P. H.| last3 = Karkazis| first3 = K.| author-link1= Rebecca Jordan-Young | author-link3= Katrina Karkazis |title = Sex, health, and athletes| journal = BMJ| date = April 2014 | pmid=24776640| s2cid = 2198650}}{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1210/jc.2012-3893| pmid = 23633205 | issn = 0021-972X | volume = 98| issue = 6| pages = –1055–E1059| last1 = Fénichel| first1 = Patrick| last2 = Paris| first2 = Françoise| last3 = Philibert| first3 = Pascal| last4 = Hiéronimus| first4 = Sylvie| last5 = Gaspari| first5 = Laura| last6 = Kurzenne| first6 = Jean-Yves| last7 = Chevallier| first7 = Patrick| last8 = Bermon| first8 = Stéphane| last9 = Chevalier| first9 = Nicolas| last10 = Sultan| first10 = Charles| title = Molecular Diagnosis of 5α-Reductase Deficiency in 4 Elite Young Female Athletes Through Hormonal Screening for Hyperandrogenism| journal = The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism| date = June 2013| doi-access = free}}{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/8210471.stm|title=Semenya told to take gender test |publisher=BBC Sport|date=19 August 2009|access-date=19 August 2009}}{{cite news | title = A Lab is Set to Test the Gender of Some Female Athletes. | work = The New York Times | date = 30 July 2008 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/30/sports/olympics/30gender.html?_r=2&ref=olympics&oref=slogin&oref=slogin | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170904050730/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/30/sports/olympics/30gender.html?_r=2&ref=olympics&oref=slogin&oref=slogin | archive-date = 4 September 2017 }} There is no evidence that innate hyperandrogenism in elite women athletes confers an advantage in sport.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1210/jc.2014-1391| pmid = 25137421 | issn = 0021-972X | pages = –2014–1391| last1 = Bermon| first1 = Stéphane| last2 = Garnier| first2 = Pierre Yves| last3 = Lindén Hirschberg| first3 = Angelica| last4 = Robinson| first4 = Neil| last5 = Giraud| first5 = Sylvain| last6 = Nicoli| first6 = Raul| last7 = Baume| first7 = Norbert| last8 = Saugy| first8 = Martial| last9 = Fénichel| first9 = Patrick| last10 = Bruce| first10 = Stephen J.| last11 = Henry| first11 = Hugues| last12 = Dollé| first12 = Gabriel| last13 = Ritzen| first13 = Martin| title = Serum Androgen Levels in Elite Female Athletes| journal = The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism| date = August 2014 | volume=99| issue = 11 | doi-access = free}}{{cite news|last1=Branch|first1=John|title=Dutee Chand, Female Sprinter With High Testosterone Level, Wins Right to Compete|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/sports/international/dutee-chand-female-sprinter-with-high-male-hormone-level-wins-right-to-compete.html|access-date=22 May 2016|work=The New York Times|date=27 July 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160814221355/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/sports/international/dutee-chand-female-sprinter-with-high-male-hormone-level-wins-right-to-compete.html|archive-date=14 August 2016}} While Australia protects intersex persons from discrimination, the Act contains an exemption in sport.

{{Main|Intersex and LGBT}}

Intersex people may face discrimination within LGBT settings and multiple organizations have highlighted appeals to LGBT rights recognition that fail to address the issue of unnecessary "normalising" treatments on intersex children, using the portmanteau term "pinkwashing".

Emi Koyama has described how inclusion of intersex in LGBTI can fail to address intersex-specific human rights issues, including creating false impressions "that intersex people's rights are protected" by laws protecting LGBT people, and failing to acknowledge that many intersex people are not LGBT.{{Cite web| last = Koyama| first = Emi| title = Adding the "I": Does Intersex Belong in the LGBT Movement?| work = Intersex Initiative| url = http://www.intersexinitiative.org/articles/lgbti.html| access-date = 18 May 2016| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160517075057/http://www.intersexinitiative.org/articles/lgbti.html| archive-date = 17 May 2016}} Julius Kaggwa of SIPD Uganda has written that, while the gay community "offers us a place of relative safety, it is also oblivious to our specific needs".{{Cite news| issn = 0261-3077| last = Kaggwa| first = Julius| author-link = Julius Kaggwa| title = I'm an intersex Ugandan – life has never felt more dangerous| work =The Guardian| access-date = 2016-10-03| date = September 19, 2016| url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/16/intersex-ugandan-lgbt-gay-rights-life-never-felt-more-dangerous?CMP=share_btn_tw| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161006015137/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/16/intersex-ugandan-lgbt-gay-rights-life-never-felt-more-dangerous?CMP=share_btn_tw| archive-date = October 6, 2016}} Mauro Cabral has written that transgender people and organizations "need to stop approaching intersex issues as if they were trans issues" including use of intersex as a means of explaining being transgender; "we can collaborate a lot with the intersex movement by making it clear how wrong that approach is".{{Cite web| last = Cabral| first = Mauro| author-link = Mauro Cabral Grinspan| title = IAD2016: A Message from Mauro Cabral| work = GATE – Global Action for Trans Equality| access-date = 2016-11-12| date = October 26, 2016| url = https://transactivists.org/2016/10/26/iad2016-a-message-from-mauro-cabral/| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161103133403/https://transactivists.org/2016/10/26/iad2016-a-message-from-mauro-cabral/| archive-date = November 3, 2016}}

Organisation Intersex International Australia states that some intersex individuals are same sex attracted, and some are heterosexual, but "LGBTI activism has fought for the rights of people who fall outside of expected binary sex and gender norms"{{cite web | title = Intersex for allies | url = http://oii.org.au/allies | date = November 21, 2012 | last = Organisation Intersex International Australia | author-link = Organisation Intersex International Australia | access-date = 18 May 2016 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160607042937/http://oii.org.au/allies/ | archive-date = 7 June 2016 }}[http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/news/oii-releases-new-resource-on-intersex-issues-13999.html OII releases new resource on intersex issues] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606202143/http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/news/oii-releases-new-resource-on-intersex-issues-13999.html |date=2014-06-06 }}, Intersex for allies and Making services intersex inclusive by Organisation Intersex International Australia, via Gay News Network, 2 June 2014. but, in June 2016, the same organization pointed to contradictory statements by Australian governments, suggesting that the dignity and rights of LGBTI (LGBT and intersex) people are recognized while, at the same time, harmful practices on intersex children continue.{{cite web | title = Submission: list of issues for Australia's Convention Against Torture review | url = https://oii.org.au/30546/loi-cat-review/ | work = Organisation Intersex International Australia | date = June 28, 2016 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160916201538/https://oii.org.au/30546/loi-cat-review/ | archive-date = September 16, 2016 }}

In August 2016, Zwischengeschlecht described actions to promote equality or civil status legislation without action on banning "intersex genital mutilations" as a form of pinkwashing.{{cite web | title = "Intersex legislation" that allows the daily mutilations to continue = PINKWASHING of IGM practices | url = http://stop.genitalmutilation.org/post/Intersex-politics-that-ignore-the-daily-mutilations-PINKWASHING-OF-IGM-PRACTICES | work = Zwischengeschlecht | date = August 28, 2016 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160919050911/http://stop.genitalmutilation.org/post/Intersex-politics-that-ignore-the-daily-mutilations-PINKWASHING-OF-IGM-PRACTICES | archive-date = September 19, 2016 }} The organization has previously highlighted evasive government statements to UN Treaty Bodies that conflate intersex, transgender and LGBT issues, instead of addressing harmful practices on infants.{{cite web | title = TRANSCRIPTION > UK Questioned over Intersex Genital Mutilations by UN Committee on the Rights of the Child – Gov Non-Answer + Denial | url = http://stop.genitalmutilation.org/post/UK-Questioned-over-Intersex-Genital-Mutilations-by-UN-Committee-on-the-Rights-of-the-Child | work = Zwischengeschlecht | date = May 26, 2016 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160919045730/http://stop.genitalmutilation.org/post/UK-Questioned-over-Intersex-Genital-Mutilations-by-UN-Committee-on-the-Rights-of-the-Child | archive-date = September 19, 2016 }}

{{transcluded section|Intersex human rights}}

{{#section:Intersex human rights|bycountry}}

• Intersex human rights
• Intersex medical interventions
• Intersex rights by country
• Legal recognition of intersex people
• Sexual characteristics
• Endosex

{{Reflist}}

{{Intersex}}

{{Discrimination|state=collapsed}}

{{Authority control}}

Intersex discrimination

Category:Intersex rights

Category:Discrimination against LGBTQ people

Category:Involuntary genital mutilation