Taboo Intersex: between the Genders

Directed by

Britta Dombrowe

Written by

Britta Dombrowe

Produced by

ZDF

Documentary, Germany, 2010, 52 min

One in 3,000 to 5,000 newborn children is neither male nor female. Officially, these "hermaphrodite", "androgynous" or "intersex" babies don't exist at all: the gender of a child has to be registered on its birth certificate in a matter of days, and there are only two boxes to check, male or female. Parents and doctors often bow to the social pressure to pick a gender.

"Corrective" gender surgery is often the method of choice – a practice that is now being reevaluated. This film recounts the fate of 4-year-old Inge, who was born of indeterminate gender. Despite the doctors' urging to "correct" their child quickly, the parents decided to leave Inge to decide later in life. A choice Christiane Völling (50) never had. When she was born with an enlarged clitoris, she was classed as male. Her uterus and ovaries were later removed without consultation, and she was injected with male hormones for years. Only 30 years after the operation did she discover she was robbed of her femininity, an all-too-frequent occurrence...

Debate with :

• Marc Fellous, professor of human genetics, infertility and genetics of intersexuality