The fight for gender equality can be dated further back to the 17 th century.

Initially, it was
women who were strongly fighting for equality with men. In the start of 19 th century, feminist
movements were held across the globe in the hope of getting equal benefits and opportunities
with that of men especially in the field of labor. As time went by, the fight for gender balance has
evolved as more gender identities such as homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals emerged.
In line with this, a new issue on gender has arisen. The documentary by Katie Couric presented
cases of those who were born without a clear distinction of being a male or a female physically.
The term intersex generally describes a person who cannot be physically described as
a male or female. In its physiological aspect, it could be that a person may be born in-between
male and female genitals, a female-appearing person but has male-quality anatomy or someone
who has a large clitoris or a small penis or devoid of vaginal opening. Basically someone who is
not physically sure of its gender. What was tackled in the documentary was the issue of having
a surgery on those new-born babies who were labelled as intersex. Unfortunately, as what
sociology has argued, the concept of gender does not solely lie on its physiological aspect
biology, genetics and brain chemistry. The mind also dictates the gender of the individual. In
most cases the onset of a persons gender identity emerges during puberty. For some
environmental and societal factors can also contribute to this decision.
One featured guest who was labelled as an intersex, was born with a female
appearance grew up in a family who instilled that she was a female. She lived decades of her
life believing this so. After birth, her parents decided to have her undergone a surgery that would
make her genitals look normal. However, as time went by, she decided that she wasnt female
anymore and was discovered to have male-like internal anatomy by having more-than-normal
testosterone count. With conviction, she is living the rest of her life as a male presently. In
contradiction with her story, one featured family has a daughter with the same condition but
decided to reject the surgery. The parents decided to hand the final decision on her gender
orientation to their daughter. In connection with the two stories, I think that if being labelled as
intersex does not pose any serious danger to the health of the baby, the new-born should be
left to grow as it is and discover his or her own identity. Undergoing surgery that would lead to
regret and suffering of the receiving party would just defeat the purpose of doing it in the first
place.
Another unique cases presented in the show were the transsexuals. Those who may
physically appear male or female but psychologically and emotionally, they feel that they belong
to the opposite sex. Pressured to act based on their inborn physiology, they think that they are
imprisoned in the wrong body and some opt to undergo total sex transformation which
include puberty blockers, hormone supplements and eventually surgery. For the few lucky ones,
they receive enough support from family members and accept them no matter what their gender
identity is. One guest who has undergone surgery was already married with two children
decided that he was not actually male. While the interview was going on for the married couple,
it amazed me how supportive, understanding and loving the wife was. If only those who were
undergoing the same situation receive that kind of support, the fight for gender equality will not
be this hard.
Despite being considered a sociological issue, the idea of gender has no definite
scientific explanation. It its physiological aspect, this concept is very vague even up to this date.
I think further research and studies are yet to be conducted in order to answer questions about
emerging gender identities. Some psychological explanations are ignored by most people but
maybe if there is actually a clear scientific explanation, some things will change. It must be up to
the individual to decide on as to what he or she wants to be.