Genetics (page 1 of 2)

For an introduction to these issues, see our page on genetics

the shape of new south wales, in purple

Statement on intersex and abortion law reform

This statement follows press reports in the Daily Telegraph, suggesting that NSW Finance Minister Damien Tudehope will introduce a proposed amendment to a bill decriminalising abortion in the NSW Legislative Council to prohibit terminations on grounds of sex or intersex traits. IHRA has a longstanding position on the use of IVF technologies and terminations. We…
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Double helix icon, representing DNA

Genomics and genetic selection

Many intersex traits are genetic, with an identified origin. The elimination of such traits from the gene pool is an established and growing phenomenon.

My Health Record logo

My Health Records

At present, a minority of Australian have digital health records, and such records are not used routinely. As the number of people with digital records increases, it is likely that they will increasingly be used as a way of documenting and tracking our health. The implementation of the government’s national My Health Records scheme for…
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My Body, My Choice

The Yogyakarta Principles plus 10

An important and long-awaited supplement to the Yogyakarta Principles is published today. The Principles apply international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation, gender identity, and now also gender expression and sex characteristics.

Darlington retreat

Darlington Statement

The Darlington Statement is a joint consensus statement by Australian and Aotearoa/New Zealand intersex organisations and independent advocates, agreed in March 2017. It sets out the priorities and calls to action by the intersex human rights movement in our countries.

LGBTI sponsorship and the elimination of intersex traits

The sponsorship of LGBTI events by IVF businesses raises ethical issues not just about the elimination of intersex traits, but also about the nature of community and comprehension of issues relating to intersex bodily diversity.

detail from cover image

Georgiann Davis, “Contesting Intersex”

Georgiann Davis’s first book, “Contesting Intersex, The Dubious Diagnosis” is hotly awaited, and the first chapter has just become available online, from the publisher. Here are a couple of quotes (references omitted): I show how contemporary U.S. medical experts on intersex, like much of society, tend to hold narrow, essentialist understandings of sex, gender, and…
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detail from the cover of Laverne Cox on Time Magazine

Intersex, brain differences, and the transgender tipping point

Over a decade ago, intersex and trans activist Raven Kaldera wrote that trans people seeking classification as intersex might be seeking legitimisation, as if a physical cause is necessary to obtain social or familial validation. He said that trans people using brain sex theories to claim intersex status were basing a political stance on unproven…
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CeeCee Cody writes on XXY and intersex

In Australia, and indeed in the rest of the world, intersex is not recognised as a third gender identity but rather a biological state of being, meaning we are born intersex. Here in Australia, intersex has been in the news quite a lot over the last number of months and the reasons for that had…
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