At the start of 2009 Caster Semenya was virtually unknown.

Now she is one of the most famous athletes in the world, not only due to great running, but also her identity. After her victory in the World Championships, Semenya was forced to take ‘gender tests’, which after being leaked revealed that she is intersex. This has created a huge debate over the rights on intersex people and has led many to ask the question, ‘What is the use of the sex binary in sport?’

The justifications for the sex binary in sport range from the idea that women cannot deal with the aggressiveness of men in competition, to that sex discrimination is no different than ‘weight classes’ due to inherently different abilities that women have compared to men. Sex discrimination is justified through the idea of ‘fairness in competition’.

However, this is extremely problematic. Firstly, it leaves out people such as Caster Semenya, who don’t fit into the set sex binary. Semenya, and other intersex people, expose the myth that there are only two biological sexes. There is actually significant diversity among humans in sex definers such as genitals, reproductive organs, chromosomes, and hormones. The rigid male/female sex binary does not fit the reality of sex and gender diversity. This leaves intersex athletes with the options of either giving up competition or undergoing intrusive medical procedures to ‘correct’ the issue. Second to this, sex discrimination in sport perpetuates the image of men as being more athletic, stronger, faster and better in a whole range of ways than women. This greatly enhances the societal image of women as being ‘the weaker sex’.

But isn’t this true? Aren’t females in general not as strong as males and therefore not able to compete as well in sports? There are two problems with this idea. First, even though testosterone does advance muscular growth, its levels differ naturally within all people, leaving many with different physiques than what is expected from a member of their sex. A general separation based on a sex binary therefore ignores many of the physical differences that exist within all sexes (something that separation based on factors such as weight or height would not do).

Second to this, even if males are in general stronger than females, this does not mean that they are more athletic. Strength should be just one element in the definition of skill in sporting competition, something that current sporting competition forgets. Too much emphasis is now placed on strength in sport (e.g. the increasing role of a strong serve in tennis), perpetuating the image of females as being ‘less athletic’ by focusing athleticism around a predominately male attribute.

The stereotype of the weaker sex is a prevalent and destructive one. To remove it we must remove sex discrimination in sport and allow people of all sexes to compete freely using an array of skills as the tester of athleticism. We can no longer accept the image of women as being the weaker, less athletic sex or an imaginary binary determining what athleticism is. Removing sex separation and discrimination in sport would be more inclusive for intersex athletes, and address sexist attitudes to women. If we really want to create fairer competition we must stop assuming someone isn’t good enough because they don’t have a pair of testicles and focus on people’s actual skills instead.

Tannsjo, T (2000) Against Sexual Discrimination in Sports in Tannsjo, T & Tamburrini, C (eds.) (2000) Values in Sport. E & FN Spon, London

Abbey says yes... and here’s why.

At first gender might not seem apparent to you but it is there, tucked neatly away inside your feelings and thoughts.

Gender is how you and you alone feel and define yourself. Some say “I see myself this way,” whilst others say “It’s fluid, changing with each day.” Transgender people generally see sex and gender as two slightly differing issues, often debated but with no single definition on which all agree. Even the psychology community find it difficult to agree on any one statement.

Society presents us with and expects us to choose between female and male sex binary-types and all that goes with them. And for most of the population this is okay. But for many transgender people they are not comfortable with this and swap from one to another, and are happy with that. However, some also realise that this does not suit them, leaving them with tough decisions for which there is not necessarily any easy answer.

But it’s not all bad news. In some societies there are ‘third sexes’, though in mainstream modern societies there are just two, and this again brings us back to the daunting situation: choose one option and live the way which is most acceptable, or do something else and live with the consequences.

In time many individuals do change their gender/sex, however, it’s a monumentally conscious decision with many issues that can have lasting life-long repercussions such as alienation and rejection by family and friends; being targeted for ongoing discrimination/misunderstandings; serious employment issues including being put out of a job; health issues including depression and suicide; and occasionally murder when your truth is discovered. This   happens across the world and is not limited solely to third world nations!*

Abbey Jane shares her thoughts on Transphobia.

From time to time I get asked 'What's Transphobia?' And I respond saying there is no one description but examples, such as:

• Discriminatory words /actions of a negative nature directed at Transgender people, both unknowingly and deliberate
• Excluding trans-people from participation in community events (excuses usually around   Our Gender/Sexuality)
• Denying mental and physical health treatment to transgender people which results in mistreatment and at times death; notably transwoman Tyra Hunter
• Denying employment opportunities/ promotions to Transgender people, and Cases that generally fail to reach the Tv/Radio headlines about murdered individuals such as Brandon Teena and Gwen Araujo.

On the face of it you may dismiss these cases as 'extreme' however for transgender people they are 'common-day' occurrences. A close to home example is what I went through in 2005: An employee of a Job Agency first asked if I was interested in a job opportunity. I said yes. She made a demand of me that directly had to do with my Transgender expression (of which she was very aware before hand) and I refused to comply with it. She pushed the issue and I fought back, so she blocked all access by me to this employer, forcing first a complaint with the agency itself, then given their uncooperative response, a formal compliant with ACT HREOC. After 5 stressful months  I got an apology from the offending person with the agency getting a slap on the wrist and told to do some training. Thankfully that was the last contact I had with them but for is the lasting negative legacy of distrust about all employment agencies and prospective job situations.

If you went to Fairday at Westlund House last year you may have noticed that for the first known time here in Canberra there was a combined gender community stall which included both the Canberra Transgender Network and Agenderagender. That meant for perhaps the very first time you saw trans-men and trans-women standing side-by-side to promote gender issues and recognition in the Canberra community.

This was a milestone for the Canberra gender community as previously there’s been a perceived divide between the two sides of the transgender world and now we are talking to each other instead of trying to go it alone. This also means that we are able to take a greater interest in listening to and respecting what each other has to say on important issues of equality and gender rights and on the vast spectrum of gender diversity: how we as individuals and groups see and identify ourselves and how we relate to the wider community.

For several years, both these groups have been working to forward transgender rights and recognition, as well as provide a sense of community and social events for transgender people.

During my experiences I have observed people that know what GLB is, but not the T and I. T is little wonder since the T and I were rarely seen, and understandably that was because many of the transgender community don’t feel safe coming out the closet or they are unable to for various reasons including family, community and self-acceptance situations.

However the community has been seeing a greater transgender presence since the Hush Lounge opened in 2008. Hush welcomes T and I patrons and many of us ‘out there and doing it’ have positively responded; increasing the chances of being seen and acknowledged as part of this diverse GLBTIQ community, helping us to be one step closer to better understanding and acceptance. So when you see us please come and say hello — you will find us a very friendly bunch who, just like you, are out there having fun and lapping it up.