by Corey Whelan
As the proud owner of a vagina, I have always considered myself to be a woman. But evidentally, that decision may not always be so cut and dried. Have you been reading about Caster Semenya?
Caster Semenya is 18 years old. She’s been running for practically the entire length of that 18 years, but we in the U.S. had never heard of the South African teenager until last week, when she won the World Championship 800 meter race in Berlin, against seven other female runners from various countries, including Russia and Italy.
The thing about Caster is this. Is she a she?
Those who know her best say Caster Semenya is a girl. But according to the runners whose rear ends she whopped in the 800 meter, as well as to the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF), the line is blurry and Caster Semenya’s sexual orientation, and therefore her medal, is in doubt. That line is, in fact, often blurry. About one in every thousand individuals born worldwide are intersex, a term used for people with, get this. Gender abnormalities. According to the U.S. & World Population Clock, as of today there are 677964179 people living in the world and no, I don’t know where to put the comas. (If my kids were home they would do it for me.) But divide that number by 1,000 and you know what you get? Another really large number. So. If that many people are born each year that have a so-called “intersex condition”, why is the term gender abnormalities routinely used to describe them? Can that many people born actually be coined abnormal? Wikipedia doesn’t even list the word abnormal on its site, but does state that “Abnormality, in the sense of something deviating from the normal or differing from the typical (such as an aberration), is a subjectively defined behavioral characteristic, assigned to those with rare or dysfunctional conditions". They then go on to state that “defining who is normal or abnormal is a contentious issue in abnormal psychology.” Ya think? Caster has been derided by many around her for her entire life because she looks like a boy and acts like a boy. But most importantly, at least in the eyes of many, this speed of lightening, talented athlete, runs like a boy. Caster is a blessing to some and a threat to others. South Africa adores her and is heralding her as a hero. And her momma stated plainly, “I’m proud of her, I gave birth to her, and she is a woman. She is beautiful and perfect and anyone who has a problem with that can come and see me.” Hot stuff, that mamma. Her name is Dorcus, and she is my hero. Caster Semenya may have grown up dirt poor, beyond anything that we know. But she has the most valuable thing in the world – a mother who will fight like hell for her. Women can be fierce as anything, especially when they feel the need to protect their children. What mother living doesn’t know that? What potential, future, mother does not know that as well? What step mother? Grandmother? Surrogate mother? Birth mother? If necessary, we are indestructible, a stone wall, an iron clad brick insurmountable structure, at least where our children are concerned. Maybe not always for ourselves. But certainly always for our children. Especially if anyone tries to hurt them. I’m not a doctor and I know very little about the barrage of genetic and chromosomal tests that Caster is being put through right now by the IAAF. That information will come in another blog on this page, written by another voice. My concern is for Caster herself, not for the future of her sport, or for her competitors, or for the accuracy of scientific testing. How does Caster feel, right now? Proud of her accomplishment or embarrassed about her appearance, the public curiosity about her gender? Both? How has this eighteen year old, this kid! Always felt, or been made to feel, about herself? Who, and what, does Caster say she, herself, is? While it isn’t enough, of course, for the governing bodies of any sport to utilize as a yard stick, to me that is the true barometer. You yourself, only you, have the right to stake that claim. You are who you say you are. You are what you say you are. It is your choice, and your declaration, if you are brave enough to make it. Yours is the only voice that counts. Labels be damned. You get to decide for yourself who you are now, and who you want to be. Thanks for reading. For more information on this story go to: www.census.gov/main/www/popclock.html/ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article6806403.ece http://www.sportsscientists.com/2009/08/caster-semenya-male-or-female.html http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-south-africa-runner21- 2009aug21,0,5294672.story http://blogs.thetimes.co.za/hartley/2009/08/24/caster-all-of-south-africa-is-proud-of-you/
Well said, Corey. I too feel for this woman, and I can only imagine what she is going through. However, she is very lucky to have such a strong mother.
Posted by: Theresa Erickson | 08/24/2009 at 07:55 PM