Open Invitation To Join The Revolution

Dear Sir/Madam/Other,

We are all aware of the inequality and oppression in this world. Most recently people in Middle-Eastern and North-African countries rose up against the dictators who had made their lives miserable. Some of those dictators have or had been in power for over twenty years. This is the most visible kind of oppression, where an entire population aside from a very small elite suffers, and even then it took so long for anything to happen. What it took was for a Tunisian man to set himself on fire out of protest in the capital city.

When I was born, in 1983, most of those dictators were already in place and I never knew these countries as anything other than poor dictatorships. I am now twenty-seven years old, twenty-eight in a few months, and it has taken those countries that long to realize that a revolution was necessary. Similarly, it has taken me this long to realize that another revolution is required as well. Much like how the people of Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, Libya and the others fought or are still fighting for personal freedoms and basic human rights, there is a world-wide group of people who are being systematically discriminated against and persecuted. These are those who do not fit into what's 'normal' and 'regular', particularly when it comes to sexual diversity.

Intersexual people like me are suffering the brunt of this, with it not being recognized by the governments of many countries and the United Nations (UNHCR) not recognizing intersex either, including not as a reason for assigning refugee status when these people are being persecuted and wish to request asylum in another country. Not that there is a safe place to flee to, though, as I found out when I tried to do so. Australia is one of the more liberal-minded countries when it comes to this subject, but even it doesn't fully recognize it or offer medical treatment. Many intersexuals still opt to undergo sex re-assignment surgery to become a 'regular' man or woman, or their parents opt to have surgery performed shortly after birth. In fact many transsexuals are actually intersexual people who have been mutilated like this after birth and feel that the wrong decision was made.

My story started seven years ago when I began an adventure which as it later turned out was actually a war. The subject of this war: intersexuality. The victim of this war: me, with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Dissociative Identity Disorder and various other traumatic disorders and physical injuries. The cause? A complete refusal by the Dutch government, medical specialists and psychologists to even acknowledge the existence of intersexuality, let alone consider the option that I might be intersex, as well as the use of force when I refused to play along.

After even having been put shortly into jail and suffering abuse at the hand of Dutch police I decided at first that I would leave this country, until I found out about the above issues. There is no place to flee to, basically. This is why I decided to start my own revolution; by giving up on trying to escape and instead facing the problem head-on. I believe that one should stand up and fight for what they believe in. What I believe in is that intersexual people should be given full humanitarian protection, full human rights, recognition by every government and medical instance and that treatment should be both available and covered by insurance.

My only crime was to be born like this, why should I suffer for it? Why should anyone suffer for being born different? Why do I not have the right to be recognized for what I physically am? To get a diagnosis and peace of mind since intersex conditions often have an increased cancer risk? Why are billions spent on fertility treatments each year, usually fully covered, despite this putting a burden on society, while 'non-regular' people are denied even the most basic medical needs for their condition?

I invite not only intersexual people to join this revolution, but also transsexual people, who are being persecuted and discriminated against around the world as well, as well as homosexual people, of whom even in Amsterdam each year over a thousand are beaten up for being what they are, and further anyone who believes in justice and equality for everyone. This is my final stand. There is nowhere to go from here but through the oppression.

Everyone is invited to the revolution.


Maya Posch
www.mayaposch.com

Sign the petition at http://www.change.org/petitions/get-humanitarian-protection-for-intersex-people