The Intersex community represents people born with physical or biological sex characteristics that are more diverse than standard definitions for male or female bodies.
In recognition of Intersex Awareness Day, which takes place each year on 26 October, we invite you to learn more about the Intersex community and how to be an effective ally.
People born with intersex variations risk stigmatisation, violence and coercive medical interventions designed to make their bodies more typically female or male. Intersex Awareness Day focusses on advocacy for individual rights to body integrity, physical autonomy and self-determination across the globe.
We recognise Intersex Awareness Day on 26 October, which is the anniversary of the first demonstration by intersex advocates at the 1996 annual conference of the American Academy of Pediatrics. In Australia, the advocacy work of intersex organisations such as Intersex Human Rights Australia continues to drive change nationally and internationally.
These contributions include the historic recognition of intersex people in anti-discrimination legislation for the first time in 2013 and most recently in 2021 when the Australian Human Rights Commission urged all Australian governments to implement measures that prevent harmful medical interventions on intersex children and adolescents without personal consent. Despite these landmark achievements, there is still work to be done to educate, protect and champion intersex human rights.
