Morgan Carpenter is a bioethicist,

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 b ...

activist and researcher. In 2013 he created the intersex flag, and became president of Intersex Human Rights Australia (formerly OII Australia). He is now a co-executive director. In 2015, he cofounded a project to mark Intersex Awareness Day.

Background

Carpenter is a graduate of the

bioethics Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, me ...

program at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

and also holds qualifications from the

University of Technology, Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form ...

Dublin City University Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the '' National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its ...

and

Coventry University , mottoeng = By Art and Industry , established = , type = Public , endowment = £28 million (2015) , budget = £787.5 million , chancellor = Margaret Casely-Hayford , vice_chancellor = John Latham , students = () , undergr ...

. His intersex status was diagnosed as an adult, described as including a diagnosis of "indeterminate sex", and a surgical history.

Activism

Morgan Carpenter helped found Intersex Human Rights Australia and became president of the organisation in September 2013. Carpenter wrote the organization's submissions to Senate inquiries, appearing before a Senate hearing on anti-discrimination legislation during activities that led to the adoption of an "intersex status" attribute in anti-discrimination law on 1 August 2013, and a Senate committee inquiry on the involuntary or coerced sterilisation of people with disabilities and intersex people. Carpenter contributes to work on reform of international medical classifications and medical practices within Australia. He is named as a reviewer for a DSD Genetics website funded by the

National Health and Medical Research Council The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is the main statutory authority of the Australian Government responsible for medical research. It was the eighth largest research funding body in the world in 2016, and NHMRC-funded rese ...

, Australia, and has also authored critiques of eugenic selection against intersex traits, and clinical research priorities. He speaks out against stigma, and has spoken out on issues affecting women purported to have intersex traits in competitive sport. Carpenter took part in the first

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

expert meeting on ending human rights violations against intersex people in 2015 In the same year, he founded a project to mark Intersex Awareness Day. Carpenter was also a drafting committee member and signatory of the 2017 Yogyakarta Principles plus 10, on the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics. Carpenter has been published by The Guardian, SBS, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and other media. Intersex Pride Flag

Intersex flag

The Intersex flag was created in July 2013 by Carpenter as a flag "that is not derivative, but is yet firmly grounded in meaning". Describing the flag for Intersex Human Rights Australia, Carpenter wrote:

Academic work

With recognition of non-binary gender identities in Australian regulations, and German birth certificates, Carpenter expressed concern that such developments are "not a solution" to the needs of intersex people. In 2018, he wrote that: Carpenter argues that claims that medicalization "saves intersex people" from being framed as the "other", while "legal othering saves intersex people from medicalization are contradictory and empty rhetoric". In an article on the Yogyakarta Principles and relationships between intersex and LGBT populations, Carpenter stresses inadequacies and "dangerous" consequences from framing intersex as a sexual orientation or gender identity issue, inviting legislative enactment of protections on grounds of sex characteristics.

Selected bibliography

Books and book chapters

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Journal articles

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Recognition

In 2013, Australia's '' Gay News Network'' included Carpenter in their "LGBTI people to watch in 2014".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Morgan Living people Intersex men Intersex rights activists Australian activists 1966 births Intersex rights in Australia Intersex academics Intersex writers Flag designers