InterAction is a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

organization for

intersex Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical bina ...

people, parents, friends and allies to educate, provide peer support and address human rights issues.

History

The organization was created on October 26, 2017,

Intersex Awareness Day Intersex Awareness Day is an internationally observed awareness day each October 26, designed to highlight human rights issues faced by intersex people. History The event marks the first public demonstration by intersex people in North America ...

,. by co-founders Audrey Aegerter. and Deborah Abate.. Abate is the principal protagonist in the documentary film ''No Box For Me. An Intersex Story'' by Floriane Devigne. The organization is chaired in 2019 by Audrey Aegerter and is affiliated with

Organization Intersex International The Organisation Intersex International (OII) is a global advocacy and support group for people with intersex traits. According to Milton Diamond, it is the world's largest organization of intersex persons. A decentralised network, OII was founded ...

(OII), and

ILGA-Europe ILGA-Europe is the European region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association. It is an advocacy group promoting the interests of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people, at the European level. I ...

. It is a member of the

Istanbul Convention The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, better known as the Istanbul Convention, is a human rights treaty of the Council of Europe against violence against women and domestic v ...

Network.. and is supported by Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice.

Goals

InterAction organization for

people, parents, friends and allies to educate, provide peer support and address human rights issues. The core mission of the organization is to provide intersex persons and family members with safe space to understand themselves, and to meet others. InterAction campaigns to educate people, and end abuses and stigmatization of intersex people, including ending medical interventions on children before they are able to consent, with long-term consequences.. InterAction works within Switzerland and internationally on these issues. InterAction advocates for the depathologization of intersex bodies, and so uses nomenclature such as "variations of sexual development" rather than

disorders of sex development Disorders of sex development (DSDs), also known as differences in sex development, diverse sex development and variations in sex characteristics (VSC), are congenital conditions affecting the reproductive system, in which development of chromoso ...

. The organization prioritises the expertise of intersex people.

Activities

The organization is a member of the Istanbul Convention Network, acting as the Swiss relay for monitoring and application of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence. The agreement provides a legally-binding framework on prevention of violence, including a provision on

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

(Article 38), which the organization considers relevant to the situation of intersex people. The organization seeks to prohibit

intersex medical interventions Intersex medical interventions, also known as intersex genital mutilations (IGM), are surgical, hormonal and other medical interventions performed to modify atypical or ambiguous genitalia and other sex characteristics, primarily for the purposes ...

on intersex children, and submitted a motion proposing this to the Geneva Grand Council on April 10, 2019. The organization pleads with various branches of the Swiss government for reform to changes of name and sex, marriage law, and action to combat discrimination and hate crimes. InterAction publicly signed a joint statement calling on the

Congregation for Catholic Education , type = Congregation , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , picture =Via della Conciliazione din Roma1.jpg , picture_caption = Palazzo delle Congregazioni in Piazza ...

to reconsider its position on issues relating to intersex people as expressed in the document ''Male and Female He Created Them''. InterAction participated in the Geneva and Zurich Pride Marches in 2019 and the Remember Stonewall March 2019 in Basel. On behalf of InterAction, Audrey Aegerter represents the interests of intersex people in the canton of Geneva Consultative Commission on issues related to sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. The organization is regularly interviewed by journalists from the Swiss and French press on

LGBTI Intersex people are born with sex characteristics (such as genitals, gonads, and chromosome patterns) that "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". They are substantially more likely to identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, ...

issues, and in particular on issues affecting transgender or intersex people in Switzerland, in particular in relation to

hyperandrogenism Hyperandrogenism is a medical condition characterized by high levels of androgens. It is more common in women than men. Symptoms of hyperandrogenism may include acne, seborrhea (inflamed skin), hair loss on the scalp, increased body or facial ...

and the athlete Mokgadi Caster Semenya

History

Goals

Activities

References

See also

External links