Our Bodies, our realities, our rights: Building cross-movement solidarity on bodily autonomy, integrity, and self-determination

Thematic events on the Affirmation of Feminist Principles in commemoration of Intersex Awareness Day

Date: Wednesday October 26th, 2022

First event: register here

Time: 9am CET, 2am (Mexico City), 4am (Buenos Aires), 2pm (Bangkok), 7pm (Auckland)
Languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, International Sign Language

Second event: register here

Time: 5pm CET, 10am (Mexico City), 12pm (Buenos Aires), 12pm (Bangkok), 3am (Auckland)
Languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, International Sign Language

Moderator

• Eli Rubashkyn (Aotearoa New Zealand/ Colombia), Consultant to ILGA World’s- Gender Identity & Expression and Sex Characteristics Programme

Speakers

• Hiker Chiu (Taiwan), intersex activist
• Nidhi Goyal (India), disability rights activist
• Théo Dongmo (Cameroon), trans activist
• Grace Kamau (Kenya), sex worker activist
• Andrya Kiga (Brazil), trans/indigenous activist
• Oriana López Uribe (Mexico), abortion rights activist

Intersex activists worldwide have celebrated Intersex Awareness Day on 26 October for over 25 years. The event aims to shed light on the patterns of systemic and societal abuses and violence towards their population, and the day was chosen to mark the anniversary of the first public demonstration by intersex people in North America Follow this link to read more about the history of Intersex Awareness Day.

On the occasion of this year’s Intersex Awareness Day, ILGA World, AWID, and Count Me In! will co-sponsor a thematic event titled Our Bodies, Our Realities, Our Rights to both mark the day and revive our dedication to the feminist undertaking of the Affirmation of Feminist Principles.

This virtual event will be powerful and exciting opportunity to foster cross-movement cooperation on bodily autonomy, integrity, and self-determination, paying special attention to the concerns and the experiences of intersex individuals around these matters, while also identifying common denominators with other marginalised groups –trans people, people with disabilities, Black and Indigenous individuals, and people’s needing access to safe abortions– in the process.

Join us!

Background

In 2021, civil society organisations from all over the world came together to reaffirm core feminist principles and to amplify the positions that many feminists have historically chosen to take in relation to understanding gender, sex, and sexuality. To date, the call has been supported by over 2,000 organisations and individuals worldwide!

Through the Affirmation of Feminist Principles, these organisations set out eight focus points for intersectional feminist advocacy, aimed at undoing unfair, unequal, and unjust power structures that marginalise and victimise women as well as trans, intersex, and non-binary people in different yet interrelated ways.

Notably, Principle number 2 outlines the importance of bodily autonomy, integrity, agency and the right to identity for human rights advocacy along feminist tenets. This principle offers immense value for collaboration across movements and backgrounds, as it refers to crucial aspects of interest for advocacy on sexuality, gender, sex characteristics, as well as disability, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and sex work. 

In particular, intersex activists and rights defenders have long decried violations to their right to bodily integrity, autonomy, and self-determination, especially when subjected to harmful, invasive, and often unnecessary procedures in medical settings. This point of contention represents the foremost area of human rights advocacy for intersex movements worldwide, as it directly threatens their livelihoods, wellbeing, and mental and physical health.

At a time when the policing of bodies has become a staple in the wider anti-rights agenda, this event is an invitation for feminist movements to come together under the shared principles guiding our work: every person must have the right and the ability to make decisions about their own lives and their own bodies, and have the right to free, prior and informed consent when making decisions that impact their health and wellbeing.

Our Bodies, Our Realities, Our Rights:
join us on Intersex Awareness Day
to build cross-movement solidarity on bodily autonomy, integrity, and self-determination!