Bodies Like Ours | Intersex Peer Support

Below are three sample letters you can cut and paste and send to your representatives in Congress. Feel free to use them as is or personalize if you want. Send these either via email or postal mail (preferred).

If you would like to share the letters you write, please send us a copy via email and we will post them as an inspiration for others to read and maybe get ideas from.

Letter One - Use if Appropriate

Dear Senator/Representative__________________,

The debate over gay marriage has focused on opponents claiming that marriage is reserved for one man-one woman. For thousands of intersex people, including myself, the binary of male or female is not easily defined. Intersex is a medical term used to describe people born with non-standard reproductive or chromosomal make-up. I am concerned about what criteria will be used to define male and female in any constitutional amendments or legislation that may be introduced on this issue.

Some intersex people such as myself have a chromosomal makeup that varies from the standard XX for female and XY for male. If male and female is determined by the presence of standard sex differentiation markers such as XX or XY, what will happen to those people who are XXY or XXXY? While some intersex people may identify as homosexual, many identify as heterosexual. Attempting to define in law what it means to be a man or a woman could have serious negative consequences on heterosexual intersex people and may actually prohibit them from heterosexual marriage.

I hope you will take some time to learn how any legislation that attempts to define male and female for the purpose of marriage will impact the thousands of intersex people in this country and in your district. You can learn more about intersexuality by visiting the web sites of Bodies Like Ours at http://www.bodieslikeours.org or The Intersex Society of North America at http://www.isna.org.

Sincerely,

(your name and address here)