At the BCHRT, Jonathan Yaniv hinted at the idea that he may be intersex. He has also claimed to be intersex in a YouTube interview with Mark Hughes and in several text conversations with underage girls. Yaniv claims he was born with both male and female genitalia, thus making him intersex. I do not believe this is true. I will explain why…
What is Intersex?
First, it is important to understand what it means to be intersex. The definition of intersex is often misunderstood to mean people who are born with both male and female parts – this is false. Intersex people are people who have a “congenital disorder of sexual development”. This means that they are born with biological abnormalities that differ from those of a traditional male or female. There are many different types of congenital disorders of sexual development (or “intersex disorders”); many of which display no noticeable outward signs or symptoms. It is a myth that all intersex people have both male and female genitalia.
Some examples of intersex disorders:
XYY Syndrome – Normal men have 2 sex chromosomes (X & Y). Men with XYY syndrome have a second Y chromosome. Apart from being taller than average men and having higher rates of learning disabilities – these men function normally.
Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome – Men whose bodies do not recognize the testosterone they produce, resulting in female sex characteristics developing at puberty instead of male characteristics. These men often have a high pitch voice, breasts and a small penis/ testicles.
Turner Syndrome – Normal women have 2 sex chromosomes (X & X). Women with Turner Syndrome are missing an X chromosome resulting in many health issues (infertility, obesity, webbed neck, etc.)
Mixed gonadal dysgenesis – Mosaicism of sex chromosomes. This means that some of their cells have male chromosomes (X,Y), and some have female chromosomes (X,X). These individuals are often born with both male and female genitalia, making sexual assignment at birth impossible. This is very rare.
Notice how only one of the above conditions I listed results in someone being born with both male and female genitalia? Even within the broad term “intersex”, it is rare to be born with both male and female genitalia…
Back to Yaniv…
Yaniv is trying to tell us that he suffers from an extremely rare intersex condition. This is complete BS. If Yaniv was born with an intersex condition resulting in both male and female genitals; he would have been under the care of medical experts from birth. People with intersex conditions often require medical care (such as hormones, surgery, etc.) just to be able to live a normal life. With no offence intended, intersex people have a physical disorder. They are not the same as transgender people. When an intersex person is born with both male and female parts; they usually pursue treatment in early adulthood to “normalize” their body as either male of female (depending on which gender they identify with inside). They have always been provided this treatment; which is not the same as gender transitioning treatment.
If Yaniv were truly intersex, he wouldn’t be trans. There would be no reason to call himself trans, because he would already be covered by the intersex label. He also wouldn’t refer to his pursuit of hormones and surgery as “transitioning”, because he wouldn’t be “transitioning”. And seeing how desperate Yaniv is for attention; I cannot imagine that he would have kept his “intersex” condition a secret until adulthood. Furthermore, considering how rare it is to be intersex; Yaniv would drum up far more attention as an intersex activist as opposed to a trans rights activist. His story of being “trans” and also “intersex” just makes no sense.
In summary, many people think that intersex people have both male and female parts – this isn’t true. The intersex people who do have both male and female parts often receive treatment to appear as either male or female depending on their gender identity. This is not the same as transitioning. Intersex people are not trans people. Yaniv is hijacking a label he doesn’t understand for attention. Once again, Yaniv has proven himself a liar.
