Pidgeon Pagonis testifies for Intersex Human Rights OAS IACHR
What an amazing year it’s been, for AIC and for the intersex/DSD communities! 2013 was a year of unprecedented progress for this movement: the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture , the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Australian Senate, and the 3rd International Intersex Forum all issued statements unequivocally condemning involuntary genital-normalizing surgery and other human rights violations faced by intersex people. Australia passed historic legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of intersex status. Around the globe, intersex people and their allies are increasingly standing up and demanding their human rights, through local movements and through international collaboration.
We achieved another kind of milestone when the Liberty Hill Foundation awarded AIC with a 3-year grant for Inter/Act, our intersex youth leadership program. This support will enable our youth to make an even bigger impact on the world as they raise their voices to tell us what they want and need, and put out their visions for the future.
All of this would not have been possible without our growing staff. In 2013, AIC was joined by Kimberly Zieselman, our Director of Advancement, Inter/Act Coordinator Pidgeon Pagonis, and our new Communications and Operations Manager, Collette Carter. With a team of four we have been able to greatly magnify AIC’s impact. For example, in one week in December, I was on the road in the U.S. providing training to doctors and medical students; Kimberly was in Berlin educating international funders on the needs of the intersex/DSD community; Pidgeon was in Malta as part of the 3rd International Intersex Forum collaborating with intersex activists from around the world; and Collette was holding down the fort at home and keeping our stakeholders up-to-date on all of our activities! It makes me tired just thinking about it!
So we have much to be grateful about as we approach the end of the year. I am especially thankful for the support of a community of stakeholders who have stood with us year after year. We have been able to grow and increase our impact because of you, and we still need you .
There’s a lot of work yet to be done, and I can’t wait to see what new things we can accomplish in 2014!
In gratitude and solidarity,
Anne Tamar-Mattis
