Intersex conditions are ones that can sometimes lead to the development of atypical bodily markers of sex, such that one’s status as male or female is called into question. Despite decades of heated debate over what constitutes appropriate care for these conditions, they are generally treated with medical interventions that aim at securing a specifically cisgender future for the patient. In practice this means that 1-2 out of every 1000 infants are treated with medically unnecessary cosmetic surgery to normalize the appearance of their genitalia (often at the sake of sensation), along with sterilizing gonadectomies. Standard medical care for intersex patients thus seems to constitute clear violations to intersex individuals’ civil liberties with regards to their rights to bodily integrity, privacy and due process. Indeed, this is exactly what state and federal lawsuits filed in South Carolina argued on behalf of M.C., a 13 year old who was surgically assigned as female while in state care as an infant but who now identifies as a boy. Fascinatingly, though the hospital involved recently reached a $440,000 USD settlement with the family, the federal court case – which could have set clear precedents – was ultimately dismissed. The court held that in 2006, at the time of the surgery, it was not clear from that the surgery violated then 16 month-old M.C.’s constitutional rights. Thus, all defendants were granted qualified immunity.

In this talk, Dr. Clune-Taylor will explore the M.C. case, and situate it within the history of intersex management more broadly in order to explain how it is that we find ourselves in a situation where the international standard of care for a patient population is one that routinely violates their civil liberties. Dr. Clune-Taylor will then move on to highlight recent activist efforts to secure the rights of intersex persons by groups like interACT, and Human Rights Watch.

Catherine Clune-Taylor, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Program in Gender and Sexuality Studies at Princeton University. In addition to a Ph.D, in Philosophy Department from the University of Alberta, she also holds undergraduate degrees in Microbiology and Immunology, and Philosophy, as well as Masters in Philosophy from the University of Western Ontario. She has published her work on intersex management in journals such as PhaenEx, and is currently preparing her doctoral manuscript for publication as a book titled Securing Cisgendered Futures. This project is a critical Foucauldian analysis of all medical efforts which aim at securing a specifically cisgender future for child unable to provide informed consent. These include both the management of children with intersex conditions, as well as the treatment of trans children with so called “conversion therapies”. Clune-Taylor is the Vice-President of the Canadian Society for Women in Philosophy.

This lecture is part of the B. Myron Rusk Annual Memorial Lecture: Critical Perspectives in the Area of Civil Liberties. These talks honour Myron Rusk (1931-2009). Active community member, fiercely independently-minded thinker, and friend of many, Myron was a long-time leader and participant with the Civil Liberties Association – National Capital Region, the organization that initiated this lecture series. Talks in the series aim to take a proactive approach to thinking about contemporary issues in the area of civil liberties broadly conceived, expanding the scope of discussion and attending to the peril as well as the promise of developments in policy, law, technology, and social movements. The Rusk Lecture is always open to and welcomes the public, in line with Myron’s commitment to free and open discourse that engages ordinary people.