LEGAL BRIEFS BY SUSAN MURRAY AND ~ BETH ROBINSON fifth annual Sexual Orienta- tion and the Law conference, which was held at Vennonit ‘Law School in March. The keynote speaker at that conference was Cheryl Chase, director of the San Francisco-based Intersex Society of North America. She spoke last month we reported on the about intersexuality - also known - as hennaphroditism — and about expanding human rights to include intersexed people. Each year, a small percentage of infants are born with genitals that do not match the norm’? externally, they either have an unusually small penis and testes or an enlarged clitoris and small vagina. According to Ms. Chase, the medical establishment treat-s these infants as having a serious deformity that must immediately be ‘fixed’ with genital surgery. Because it is easier to ‘chop. something off’ than to ‘build something up,’ most of the time surgeons cut off the in'fant’s testes and penis or reduce the size of the clitoris, and ‘make’ -the child into a girl. Pediatric surgeons see such surgery as a solution to a ‘psy- chosocial emergency.’ The sole purpose is to enhance the long- term psychological well being of the patient by allowing the patient to fit in and ayoid stigma- tization. Unfortunately, accord- ing to Ms. Chase, there ’is no clear evidence that the surgery meets this goal. In fact, a grow- ing body of evidence suggests that such surgery is not only ined- ically unnecessary, but can also Cypsfairs Blue Mirrored Deco Coffee Table $85 '9 u 207 Flynn Ave. Znd floor Burlington 0 (802) 859-8966 Store Hours Tue-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 1-5 I] l l M .- be extremely damaging to the patient in the long run. The Intersex Society points out that because the surgery is done on "infants, the scar tissue often causes significant, chronic pain, because of normal changes in the size and shape of the tissue as the child grows. The Society also points to evidence of a reduction in sexual sensation caused by the surgery. In con- trast, hermaphrodites with small penises who escaped surgery as infants report in several studies that they are not only sexually functional but also have satisfy- ing sex lives. Finally, the Society argues that such surgery may cause long-term psychological harm, since a significant fraction of the infants who are ‘made into girls’ through genital surgery actually develop a male gender identity. While our culture may be prej- udiced against people with unusual genitals — although such ‘prejudice was much less wide- spread before medical interven- tion began — the Society argues that surgery is not the way to eliminate such prejudice. We do notlsuggestoperating on a person of color to eliminate the physical .characteristics that mark such a person as a member of a racial minority; rather, we have laws prohibiting racism. Likewise, the Intersex Society urges the pas- sage of laws to protect intersexed people from discrimination based on their unusual genitals. The Intersex Society analo- gizes the plight of intersexed people to girls subjected to invol- untaiy female genital mutilation. Human rights groups decry such mutilation as a violation of bodi- VT DEPT. OF HEALTH BEHAVIOR SURVEY APRIL’S LUCKY RAFFLE WINNER #1 551 225 #8968776 AIDS HOTLINE 1-800-882-2437 ly integrity and personal dignity. Likewise, the Society argues per- suasively that it is “repugnant and contrary to a child’s’basic human rights” to perform med- ically unnecessary genital surgery simply to enable a child to conform to a cultural notion of “normal” genital appearance. This is especially true. when the surgery arbitrarily dictates the child’s future gender identity and the child had no opportunity to decide whether he or she wanted the surgery in the first place. The Intersex Society is work- ing to prevent surgeons from convincing scared and confused parents that they must immedi- ately give consent to allow geni- tal surgery to be performed on their infant child. The Society believes that the patients them- selves should be allowed to make the decision when they are old enough to have established a clear male or female gender iden- tity, and when they are old enough to be able to choose for themselves whether they want to have surgery. For more informa- tion on this subject, contact the Intersex Society of North America; its Web site address is www.isna.org.V Susan Murray and Beth Robinson are attorneys at Langrock Sperry & Wool in Middlebury whose practices inclzrale general commercial and civil litigation, employment, fam- ily, estate, personal injuery and workers compensation cases. l/' you 'a’ like our column to cover (I particular legal issue of interest to our eoimmmity, please write OITM or call us at 388-6356. l\/Ieasuring Success ' One Investor At a Time We know that no matter who you are or what you do for a living, you want to see your family secure, your children educated, your retirement assured. ‘ We're ready to help with a wide ' range of investments and a profes- sionally trained Financial Advisor who can tailor a program to your needs. At Morgan Stanley Dean Witter“‘, we measure success one investor at a time. Call or visit us today. 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