For years on end, Intersex people have had to contend with the mistaken idea that their body is ‘wrong’, ‘disordered’, or even ‘freakish’.
Ignorance and confusion are at the basis of both factors. The secrecy is possibly the result of two main factors: the sense of fear and shame for having been born different, and the Medical Professionals’ drive to correct what they deem aberrant. In Malta, as in much larger countries, intersexuality is a well-kept secret. Considering that this number also corresponds to the number of naturally born redheads in the world, one may wonder why intersex people are still practically socially invisible. In other words, almost 130 million people around the world were born with one of the known variations of DSDs. According to ILGA, approximately 1.7% of the world population is Intersex. In some cases, DSDs may be discovered later in life, at the age of puberty, or when trying to conceive. Differences of Sex Differentiation (DSDs) are a number of conditions which often present as atypical genitalia in relation to the chromosomes or gonads at birth.
