Intersex Does Not Refute The Sex Binary

Full Title: Intersex Does Not Refute The Sex Binary

Speaker:
Dr. Rashad Rehman, PhD
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio

Abstract:
Does “intersex” refute the claim that sex in human beings is binary? Many argue that it does on both theoretical and practical grounds. Among those who spearhead this claim on theoretical grounds, the claim is that the presence of intersex folk is a straightforward counter-example to the sex binary – with varying views concerning whether intersex is a third sex, and consequently whether sex is a spectrum, a social construction (and consequently the kind of thing which could be self-identified), or a conglomeration of sex characteristics. On practical grounds, these non-binarist views appear to sit well with the current cultural and intellectual landscape that ethically condemns intersex pediatric surgery (IPS): the claim is that parents and healthcare providers who surgically “assign” a sex for an intersex infant fail to appreciate the natural sexual diversity among human beings – a purported consequence of sex binarism. In this talk, I argue that “intersex” does not refute the sex binary, and moreover that even if sex is binary, it does not entail or motivate the moral permissibility of IPS.

Additional Details:
The event is free and is open to the general public.