StopIGM.org

Dix Poppas, Weill Cornell University and Medical School

While Americans are outraged at the thought of female genital mutilation in Africa, practices just as shocking and unwelcome have been taking place in the US and have remained behind closed doors for years, performed not by a barber in a dingy backroom, but by a certified doctor in a respected hospital in Manhattan. 

People like Janet Green, born with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, also known as undetermined sex say the choice to operate, made by doctors and parents, was subjective in her personal case, as well as countless others.

“Many of these surgeries have no medical necessity. It really is a cosmetic surgery that is done on infants and on children. They were done at the expense of their sensation, at the expense of their not being comfortable with intimacy, so the goal of having us be able to be intimate was really lost,” said Green.

Sex therapist Tiger Devore feels they are victims of medical research.

“They have been experimenting on our bodies since the fifties, and they have to stop doing that as quickly as possible, because there are lots and lots, and lots of us telling them – it’s not working”, said the former patient.

Devore said the rate of suicides among young males operated on as children has been sky rocketing. He is now crusading for limiting surgeries to adults able to voice their consent.

>>> Continued: Genital mutilation: America’s double standard (Video + Transcript)

“3rd EuroDSD Symposium” Lübeck, May 21, 2011    –> Open Letter”
(Center: Garry L. Warne, Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne)

For 60 years now, the practice of cosmetic genital surgeries on little children with “atypical” genitals continues. In all these years and decades, the endocrinologists, surgeons and other clinicians responsible for these surgeries couldn’t be bothered to gather evidence for the alledged beneficience of these surgeries, or even to do consistent follow-ups or only disclose statistics, but continue to operate on mere anecdotal evidence.

For 20 years now, survivors of these surgeries oppose them publicly, and consistently criticise them as “immensely destructive of sexual sensation and of the sense of bodily integrity”. For 20 years now, the clinicians concerned refuse to listen, let alone acknowledge these grave concerns.

“There is a serious ethical problem here: risky surgeries are being performed as standard care and are not being adequately followed-up. Intersexuals are understandably tired of hearing that ‘long-term follow-up data is needed’ while the surgeries continued to occur.”

There are also many reports and statements by Human Rights Advocacy Groups (e.g. Terre des Femmes 2004, CEDAW 2009, Amnesty Germany and Amnesty Switzerland 2010) and publications by experts in these fields (e.g. Hanny Lightfoot-Klein 2003, Fana Asefaw 2005, Nancy Ehrenreich/Mark Barr 2005) clearly stating that non-consented cosmetic surgeries on children gravely violate human rights (particularly the Right to Physical Integrity) and who underline the similarities and parallels between these surgeries and the practice of female genital mutilations.

>>> Full Text: Open Letter of Concern to “3rd EuroDSD Symposium – From Gene to Gender” (Zwischengeschlecht.org) 

“STOP Genital Mutilation in Children’s Clinics!” – St. Gallen, February 6, 2011

In 1950, the US-endocrinologist Lawson Wilkins introduced systematic cosmetic surgeries on children with “atypical genitals” at the Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore. Staying at Johns Hopkins at that time, visiting Swiss endocrinologist Andrea von Prader introduced this practice in Europe after his return to Zurich in the same year. In 1955, the now infamous sexologist John Money published a justifying theory after the fact, declaring early cosmetic surgeries as (pseudo) standard.

Since the late 1950s, medical guidelines around the globe have been recommending children born with “atypical genitals” a.k.a. “Hermaphrodites/Intersexed/DSD patients” to be surgically “corrected” preferably within the first 18 months of their lives. According to the classic surgeons’ motto “It’s easier to dig a hole than to build a pole”, most of them are “made to girls”, although in the meantime urologists increasingly indulge in the “challenge of masculinization”.

Today, according to studies by the mutilators themselves, at least 90% of the population born with “indeterminate” or otherwise “unusual” sex anatomies were (and still are!) submitted to on average multiple medically unnecessary genital surgeries starting in early childhood, resulting in appallingly high risk of lifelong loss of genital sensation, physical pain and massive psychological traumata.

The cosmetic “treatments” include:

• “corrective surgery”, e.g. amputation of the penis/clitoris a.k.a. “clitoral reduction”; “penile recostruction”; “hypospadias repair”; etc.
• carving an artificial “neo-vagina” which has to be dilated permanently
• castration, followed by lifelong hormone “therapy”
• pre-natal hormone “therapy” (introduced in the late 1970s)
• concealing the truth from the “patients”

What these systematic non-consented surgeries actually do FEEL like for the “patients”, was never part of the equation, let alone their alleged “benefits” clinically tested. Adult “patients” were simply left behind by the hundreds of thousands.

Arguably, the continuing forced “medical treatments” of children with “atypical” genitals are one of the worst human rights violation perpetrated in the “developed countries” since the end of World War II.

>>> Full Text: Hermaphrodites in the “Developed World”: Extermination by Surgery vs. Struggle for Human Rights – Victims of Modernity – 1950: From Experimentation to Extermination – A Human Rights Issue! 

See also:
• Lawson Wilkins: “Amputation of the clitoris at the earliest possible time”
   to prevent “anxiety in parents” (2)
• Lawson Wilkins et al. (1958, 1971): Cosmetic clitoris amputations (3)

Intersex Genital Mutilations
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
2014 NGO Report to the UN Committe on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents  

STOP IGM Primer:
What everyone should know about Intersex Genital Mutilations (IGM)!
>>> Download (PDF, 1.95 MB)

Advocates for Informed Choice (AIC) has an online petition ready to sign. Though the main angle is genital surgeries on girls with ‘too big’ clitorises, via footnote (3) the petition covers all forms of mutilations of children with ‘atypical genitals’, including ‘hypospadias corrections’.

>>> Please sign the petition here!

Thank you for your solidarity!

[…] As “leading scientists in intersex research” (Press Release 9.1.12), surely you are well informed

• that at least one in thousand children are born with “atypical” genitalia, and that according to studies by the doctors themselves, 90% of these children are submitted to “corrective” cosmetic surgeries, without an actual medical need

• that survivors of such surgeries have been denouncing them as “immensely destructive of sexual sensation and of the sense of bodily integrity”, as “western genital mutilation”, “medical crime” and “fundamental human rights violation”

• that stopping cosmetic genital surgery for children remains the first demand of virtually all organisations of survivors from the beginning until today.

[…] The human rights advocacy group Zwischengeschlecht.org is deeply concerned that, at an international & interdisciplinary conference sporting the notions “Intersex” and “Society” in its title, of all things the daily genital mutilations, as well as the voices and concerns of the actual survivors, seem to be disregarded.

In the name of people afflicted or threatened by childhood cosmetic genital surgery, we kindly ask the organisers, speakers and participants to let us know:

1) Are you informed, which institutions directly or indirectly involved in the conference, perform a) which and b) how many cosmetic genital surgeries on children? […]   >>> Fulltext 

Next week, in Geneva the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) will debate Intersex Genital Mutilations for the first time.

Time is of essence! We are lobbying the UN Missions and other relevant bodies and ask for your support.

>>> Please help to end 
        intersex genital mutilations!  Thank you!

“11th EMBL/EMBO Conference” Heidelberg, November 6, 2010    –> Open Letter

The history of the sciences of sex, gender and sexual differentiation, including amongst other disciplines, biology, endocrinology, genetics, sexology and gender studies, is inextricably intertwined with the history of the medical crimes committed on hermaphrodites (1).

In the last decade, criticism of abuse of hermaphrodites in the name of scientific theories and research started to emerge by the people concerned, aimed mostly at the new discipline of gender studies (2). In the meantime, this criticism is becoming a topic further explored by criticised themselves, however, up to now still considerably hindered presumably by blind spots of the ‚gender lens‘.

On the other hand, detailed criticism aimed at the ‚hard science‘ disciplines seems almost non existent, let alone empathy from the scientists concerned, despite the obvious and close bi-directional relations, i.e. both with regards to the ongoing medical crimes against hermaphrodites and the published data thereof being part of the foundation of these disciplines, as well as new findings within these ‚purely scientific‘ disciplines inevitably being used by the actual perpetrators to justify and perpetuate their bloody deeds.

No one will ever know, how many lives of innocent hermaphrodite children were irreversibly ruined or even lost by medical crimes in the name of science, how many suffered from mutilated and butchered genitals, loss of sexual sensation, constant pain, horrific scars, massive trauma, suicide, to name just some of most obvious consequences.

>>> Full Text: Open Letter of Concern to 11th EMBL/EMBO Science and Society Conference ‘The Difference between the Sexes – From Biology to Behaviour’ (Zwischengeschlecht.org)

50 min. documentary featuring survivors, a.o. Janet Green and Tiger Howard Devore. Shown worldwide on BBC 1 under the title “Me, My Sex, and I,” and in the US by the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN/Discovery) as “The Truth of My Sex.”

>>> Watch online    >>> YouTube with english and chinese subtitles 

As survivors of non-consensual childhood surgeries, as well as persons concerned grateful for having escaped such surgeries, we are very saddened and concerned about how, as far as we can see, an overwhelming majority of the speakers and Chairpersons at the ‘IV World Congress on Hypospadias and Disorders of Sex Development hosted by the International Society for Hypospadias and DSD (ISHID)’ seems to refuse to listen to their former patients, and instead continue to advocate and perform medically unnecessary cosmetic genital surgeries on children no matter what the consequences for these children. We deeply regret that the Royal College of Surgeons of England, the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children and the University College Hospital Education Centre take part in such a questionable endeavour, including the infamous ‘live surgeries’.   >>> continued 

>>> Infopage ‘ISHID 2011’ Protests           >>> Video ‘Three Vigils’ (10:24)  
>>> Flyer A4 (PDF 1.7MB) – TRIGGERWARNING!
>>> Open Letter to ‘ISHID 2011’, RCS, GOSH, and UCH

Peaceful protest outside the Royal College of Surgeons of England, host of ‘ISHID 2011’,
just before the opening of the congress, London September 17th 2011
>>> More Pics of Protest #1 by Behzad @ demotix – Thanks!

>>> Video of Protest #3 by MenDoComplain – Thanks!
>>> Open Letter to ‘ISHID 2011’, RCS, GOSH and UCH
>>> Flyer A4 (PDF 1.7MB) – TRIGGERWARNING!
>>> Genital Mutilators Converging in London, Sparking Protests
>>> 13.9.11: Post on lesbilicious.co.uk – Thanks!

Press Release by Zwischengeschlecht.org, September 17, 2011:

Today marks the beginning of the ‘IV. World Conference of Genital Mutilators in Children’s Clinics’ a.k.a. ‘ISHID 2011’ at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, picketed by survivors remembering the victims and commemorating 15 years of peaceful protests against their tormentors.

For three days, the ruthless docs will propagate and perpetrate their unethical, inhumane and illegal deeds, culminating in a whole day of ‘Live Genital Mutilations’ on Monday, beleaguered by some of their former victims. During their first peaceful vigil today, they will remember the first public protest by survivors against the mutilators organised by the Intersex Society of North America (ISNA), when ‘Hermaphrodites with Attitude’ took to the streets picketing the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pediatricians in Boston on October 26th 1996. This first public protest by survivors was announced by a press release titled ‘Hermaphrodites target Kiddie Docs’ – a motto today unfortunately still as up-to-date as 15 years ago …

On Sunday, the London protestors will hand in an Open Letter to the perpetrators of the ‘IV World Congress of the International Society for Hypospadias and Intersex Disorders (ISHID)’ and their local accomplices offering them hospitality and support, amongst others the Royal College of Surgeons of England and the Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. The protests will continue on Monday in front of the University College Hospital Education Centre, where the ‘Live Mutilations’ will be televised for the ‘ISHID 2011’ pedo docs.

The human rights advocacy group Zwischengeschlecht.org demands the prohibition of cosmetic genital surgeries on children and minors and „Human Rights for Hermaphrodites too!“

Kind regards

Daniela Truffer / Zwischengeschlecht.org (President)
Mobile: +41 76 398 06 50

Markus Bauer / Zwischengeschlecht.org (Campaigns)
Mobile: +41 78 829 12 60

https://www.stopigm.org
http://humanrights.4hermaphrodites2.org
Documentation
‘Intersex Genital Mutilations: History & Current Practice’
>>> Download (PDF, 2.4 MB)   [ TRIGGER WARNING!!! ]

STOP IGM Primer:
What everyone should know about Intersex Genital Mutilations (IGM)!
>>> Download (PDF, 1.95 MB)      

 

BACKGROUND

One to two in 1,000 children are born with ‘atypical’, ‘ambiguous’, or ‘otherwise deemed unworthy’ genitals. At least 90% of them are submitted to cosmetic genital surgeries and other invasive medical interventions in western children’s clinics—without actual medical need, without evidence of any benefit for the children, but in blatant violation of their human rights. Survivors have been accusing these systematic, massive and irreversible practices as a gross violation of physical integrity and as Western Genital Mutilation for at least 20 years.

On September 17-19, perpetrators of ‘cosmetic genital surgeries’ on children with ‘atypical genitals’ will celebrate ‘IV. World Conference’, culminating in a ‘live surgery’ marathon — while their victims deplore non-consented removal of healthy genital tissue resulting in loss of sensation, and will be protesting ‘gross human rights violations.’

The mutilators wax lyrical about ‘clitoral reductions,’ ‘penile reconstructions’ and other ‘surgical challenges,’ hellbent on ‘correcting’ what they deem ‘too big clitorises’ and ‘imperfect penises’ as quickly as they can, before the parents might start loving their children the way they were born. [1] [2]

The victims call it ‘medical crimes’ and ‘western genital mutilation’ [3], publicly protesting life long trauma, pain and/or loss of s*xual sensation, drawing parallels to female genital mutilation and child s*xual abuse [4]. Accusations, which during the last decade again and again have been backed by human rights experts [5] and honest clinicians alike, perhaps most notably by doctors from Middles*x/UCL [6].

Yet still the majority of pediatric endocrinologists and surgeons turn a blind eye to the victims’ pleas, as well as to the mounting evidence-based data on the negative impact of the unwanted surgeries. Case in point: The ‘IV World Congress on Hypospadias and Disorders of S*x Development’ a.k.a. ‘ISHID 2011.’ [7]

Peaceful pickets lead by survivors will remind the perpetrators that it’s not OK to mutilate defenceless little children. [8]

 
References
Documentation
‘Intersex Genital Mutilations: History & Current Practice’
>>> Download (PDF, 2.4 MB)   [ TRIGGER WARNING!!! ]

STOP IGM Primer:
What everyone should know about Intersex Genital Mutilations (IGM)!
>>> Download (PDF, 1.95 MB)

[1] Since 1950, western pediatricians have been advocating and practicing medically not necessary ‘cosmetic genital surgeries’ on defenceless toddlers the sooner the better, taking advantage of overwhelmed and ill-informed parents.
http://humanrights.4hermaphrodites2.org

[2] Until today, the mutilators never succeeded in clinically proving any alledged benefits for the actual ‘patients’, but nonetheless insist on continuing with uncontrolled medical experiments:
‘There is a serious ethical problem here: risky surgeries are being performed as standard care and are not being adequately followed-up. Inters*xuals are understandably tired of hearing that “long-term follow-up data is needed” while the surgeries continued to occur. On this, see especially the guest commentary by David Sandberg, “A Call for Clinical Research,” Hermaphrodites with Attitude (Fall/Winter 1995-1996): 8-9, and the many responses of intersexuals in the same issue.’
Alice Domurat Dreger: ‘”Ambiguous sex” – or Ambivalent Medicine?’, The Hastings Center Report May/June 1998, especially FN 40
http://www.isna.org/articles/ambivalent_medicine

[3] ‘Many human rights bodies have condemned female genital mutilation, defined as the removal of all or part of the clitoris, inner labia, or outer labia.
“Feminizing genital surgery” reduces the size of the clitoris by removing parts of the clitoris. […] Clitoral reduction surgery is thus clearly covered by the definition of female genital mutilation.’
ISNA’s Amicus Brief on Intersex Genital Surgery
http://www.isna.org/node/97

[4] Parallels to Child Sexual Abuse, see:
Tamara Alexander: ‘The Medical Management of Inters*xed Children: An Analogue for Childhood Sexual Abuse’
http://www.isna.org/articles/analog

[5] Parallels to Female Genital Mutilation, see:
Hanny Lightfoot-Klein: ‘Children’s Genitals Under the Knife: Cultural Imperatives, Secrecy, and Shame’ (2007), Chapter Nine: Intersex Surgery: For the Good of Whom?, p 167-176

[6] Evidence based findings about outcomes of cosmetic genital surgeries from Middlesex/UCL, see:
Emi Koyama: Catherine Minto & Sarah Creighton Fan Page
http://www.ipdx.org/articles/minto-creighton.html

[7] ‘IV World Congress on Hypospadias and Disorders of Sex Development’ a.k.a. ‘ISHID 2011’
ishidcongress2011.org

[8] Peaceful Protests + Info against ‘ISHID 2011’:
https://www.stopigm.org
Times and places:
https://www.stopigm.org/pages/London-Protests-ISHID-Genital-Mutilators

London, September 17-19, 2011:
PROTESTS AGAINST “ISHID” GENITAL MUTILATORS
+ Public Info Meetings September 15-16
On occasion of the “IV World Congress on Hypospadias
and Disorders of Sex Development” a.k.a. “ISHID 2011”,
incl. “Live Surgeries”

>>> Times, Dates, Places

>>> Video ‘Three Vigils’ by MenDoComplain – Thanks!
>>> Open Letter to ‘ISHID 2011’, RCS, GOSH and UCH
>>> Flyer A4 (PDF 1.7MB) – TRIGGERWARNING!
>>> Genital Mutilators Converging in London, Sparking Protests
>>> 13.9.11: Post on lesbilicious.co.uk – Thanks!

Contact: info_at_zwischengeschlecht_dot_org
Daniela Truffer +41 76 398 06 50