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This paper will serve to explore the feminist organization Femen. Femen is a postmodernist feminist activism organization based in Ukraine founded in 2008 by four young women. The organization utilizes what they have named as sextrimism, a form of activism defined by the organization as, “Female sexuality that has risen up against patriarchy by embodying itself in extreme political acts of direct action” (Ackerman). Their objective is to have victory over patriarchy, with an emphasis on the body as a tool for liberation. However, there are important critiques of the organization including their colonial ideologies and heteronormativite attitudes, but most importantly their inaccurate and harmful representations of Muslim women. In the book “Femen” by Gailia Ackerman, Ackerman details the history of Femen is which was originally composed of three women, Anna Hutsol, Oksana Shachko, and Inna Shevchenko. The group’s name comes from a combination of the word femur in Latin meaning thigh and the word femme meaning woman (Ackerman). These women grew up together in Ukraine and studied political theory together, eventually naming their group “New Ethics. ” They soon moved to Kiev together (Ackerman). Their style of protesting is distinct and consistent. It takes place in very public places like in front of government buildings. There are groups of women, most often white and young, who stand naked or topless with a flower crown on
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their head (Ackerman). They are often holding signs and/or have words written on their bodies. They are most often protesting their main platforms as being against religion, patriarchy, dictatorship, the sex and porn industry. This consistent branding and public image of their protesting is what helps them to gain popularity internationally. All of these components of their organization are exercised through their created term sextrimism, which aims to use female sexuality and the female body as grounds for activism. Their manifesto reads, “Our God is woman! Our mission is protest! Our weapons are our bare breasts! Here Femen is born, and here begins sextrisim” (Ackerman). This choice to use female nudity to gain popularity, essentially commodifying their bodies for their own agenda, is one that is intentional and strategic. Its own irony points out women’s bodies as a commodity under patriarchy. Elizabeth J. Natelle describes in their article titled “Femen And Feminism Without Boundaries” Femen as “using media as a primary tool for discovering issues that might serve as a call to action in their quest to ‘kill patriarchy’” (Natelle). Medias like photography and video are a large part of how this organization gathers and communicates.
In Haluk Arda Oskay and Sibel Özkan journal article titled “Activist Photography and Its Usage in Women’s Movements” they analyze Femen’s choice of photography as a dominant medium for awareness of their movement. “The
use of photographs in the media has great importance because visual codes are perceived faster than written codes and are easier to remember, ” (Oskay). This reflects Femen’s ideals of urgency and shock value that make their organization distinct from others. One of their most notable protests was at the European Football Championship in 2012 hosted in Ukraine. The main thing they were protesting is the hypermasculine nature of football, protesting the link between sex tourism, specifically prostitution, and football. In a recount from the group in Ackerman’s book they state, “We had inscriptions reading ‘Fuck Euro’ on our breasts and began to smash crockery at the entrance, while chanting: ‘Ukraine’s gonna lose!’” (Ackerman). Other notable protest events from this group also occur on days meant to invoke Ukrainian pride and/or are politically charged days for the country. They protested in similar styling at Europe Days and the Ukrainian International Governance Forum (Ackerman). They also carried out a series of protests following Putin’s reelection in 2011. At a polling station, they pretended to be journalists to get inside the polling station only allowed to journalists and constituency and stripped their clothes and tried to remove Putin’s ballot paper screaming, “I’m stealing Putin’s vote!” and “Putin is a thieft!” (Ackerman). In a collection of Femen footage titled “Femen 360” by Joe Pisciotta, you can see topless women jumping over fences and into the street where Putin’s cars are driving, as they scream and resist police force (Pisciotta). Through this they are protesting against authoritarianism and patriarchy, both of which Putin represents.
Their protests and actions however are highly controversial, not just among people who do not agree with their political ideologies but among feminists. Natalle argues that “FEMEN is sometimes immature and often borders on reckless when it comes to thinking through their actions, but this is unsurprising given the impulsive nature of their protests” (Natalle). Their protests are often very sporadic and chaotic, making them somewhat ineffective in Ukraine especially, where police forces are quick to arrest these women. Another one of their main criticisms among feminists is their antiniqab stance under their platform of atheism.
Michelle Coplean highlights this in their essay for the Journal Of International and Intercultural Communication titled “Muslim women against FEMEN: Asserting agency in online spaces. ” They hosted an International Topless Jihad Day as a highlighted part of their agenda under atheism, and in their “About US” section on the website they state specific intent opposition to “theocratic Islamic states practicing Shari’ah and other forms of sadism regarding women” (Coplean). This is problematic because, as people in the Facebook group titled “Muslim women against Femen” or “MWAF, ” nudity does not liberate all women. For many Muslim women hijabs or niqabs are liberating through their faith (Coplean). It highlights the problems of the colonial and
non-intersectional position of Femen’s mission as an organization. Femen is an organization with a unique approach to advocacy and protest that has earned them much notoriety internationally. They focus on protesting patriarchy carried out through the sex industry, religion, and authority. The styles of their protest utilize photography and shock value and are often met with police violence. Femen has received significant and justifiable criticism for their lack of intersectionality which leads to problematic colonial attitudes such as their stance on Muslim women. TEXT TRANSCRIPT
"DEAR BODY, THANK YOU FOR CARRYING ME ALWAYS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR LOYALTY. I KNOW I SHOVE STRESS INTO YOUR NECK, TIRE YOUR TOES, AND HOLD YOU STILL FOR TOO LONG. BUT YOU NEVER LET ME FALL. YOU SIT WITH THROUGH ALL OF IT. YOU CARRY ME TO HAVE TO NEWNESS TO EXPLORE. I LOVE DRESSING YOU WITH TREASURES OF SOFTNESS AND SPARKLING STONES. YOU'VE GRACED MY TEARS AND MY DEEPEST DIMPLE. YOU GIVE ME BREATH, JOY, JUMPING, DANCING, STRESSING, DISCOVERING! EVERY ONE OF MY TOES HAS TOUCHED ALL OF MY WORLDS.
BY KATELIN GRANT
When an intersex child is born, there are many immediate decisions and struggles parents must navigate their way through. Every parent has the best interest of their child at heart, and must decide the best way to take care of their child immediately following birth. With pressure from the medical staff and the parent’s own beliefs on gender fluidity or acceptance, there are many things they must consider and decide. This process is a challenging subject to navigate, and by doing so the parents of an intersex child will be deciding the future path their child must follow.
Throughout most of primary education when the topic of gender and sex is taught and earned, the greater majority is educated within a specific male or female binary. However, we know that much more beyond the simple dichotomy exists not just socially but biologically as well. The topic of “intersex” is often hidden in most American cultures and left out of primary education. Although there is great mention throughout history of hermaphroditic people, it is always viewed as an obscurity or something out of the ordinary. Intersex “ ...is an umbrella term for an autonomous development of the body... ” composed of different combinations of internal sexual organs, chromosomes, and external genetalia (Meoded-Danon, Yanay, 2016:59).
Although society has come a long way in accepting more individuals by their sexual or gender identities, there is still a large amount of stigma surrounding intersex individuals; either in the way that we are not taught about this characteristic or how people are made to feel incorrect for being born this way. Many doctors and medical professionals have a hard time coming to terms with intersex individuals, and coerce parents to “pick” a gender so that their child can become the standard male or female. The stigma that surrounds intersex people into their adult life, is an extremely large concept to tackle. Intersex comes in all shapes and sizes and can mean different combinations of chromosomes and external genitalia. This is seen as different from the norm and often discouraged or “taboo” to speak about. Discounting and hiding these individuals' identity and physical makeup, is a process of violating their human rights and telling them that they are not valid unless they are one or the other.
Across the United States, there are many different forms of terminology used to describe intersex individuals. While intersex is the most common form of terminology, in most medical institutions the term “DSD” or “Disorders of Sex Development” is used to define this anomaly (Lundberg, Hegarty, Roen, 2018:171). Of course, what terms are preferred and what terms are used depends specifically on the context wherein these individuals are socializing. Some people specifically prefer to be understood as intersex; as terms like DSD can feel dehumanising (Lundberg, et al. 2018:167). In this way, activists have tried to use the term intersex publicly, to help push for an end to mistreatment and stigma through the power of language. This is a key factor to changing the narrative that these people are unnatural or invalid.
What happens when a mother gives birth to a child holding some combination of both female and male features or sexual organs? Most of the time, parents are pushed into making a decision quickly after the child is born with these anomalies, under the pressure of the medical staff. Many parents are shocked upon hearing that their newborn has something different about them and simply do the best that they can to understand the situation. The decision that the parents make will set the tone for their child’s future and identity. However, at the time the parent’s main concern is making sure that their child is “normal. ” After being unaware of this condition prior to the physical birth of the child, many parents express feelings of helplessness and shock (De Clercq, Streuli, 2019:137). There is a constant external societal pressure on parents besides the immediate situation before them. There is difficulty in deciding to assign a certain sex and gender to their child because there is no way for the parents to know what that child will grow up to identify as. Not all parents choose to have a sexual assignment surgery conducted immediately after the birth of their child, but many medical professionals frown upon this decision as they understand how much more difficult society will be to navigate for that child (De Clercq, et al. 2019:142). Doctors are often able to sway the parent’s concerns by informing them that “ ...the best way to improve the child’s future quality of life... ” is to havethem undergo a sexual assignment surgery (De Clercq, et al. 2019:140).
In these cases the “ ...healthcare providers are gender gatekeepers who authoritatively validate the construction of heteronormative bodies based on gender expectations” (Timmermans, Yang, Gardner, Keegan, Yashar, Fechner, Shnorhavorian, Villain, Siminoff, Sandberg, 2019:1521). There is a direct connection between the medical professional’s own bias learned from mainstream society that ordains them following a specific “one or the other” binary. Even though a child may be born perfectly healthy, doctor’s and parents typically discuss the future implications and situations the child may encounter for being born different.
Parent’s may often be wary to agreeing for a sexual assignment surgery for their child, but they are simply choosing what they believe and what they have been told to be the best option. Parents do not want their children to struggle to “ ...navigate the complex medical, political, and ethical minefield, ” (De Clercq, et al. 2019:139) and are trying to come to a conclusion that will easily pave the way in their child’s future. This is a major problem within itself, as parents are not always given full details of what the procedure entails, or how it can cause future problems for their child. It is widely understood that the greater majority of society has shunned and created outkasts of those who go against the binary norms and “rock the boat. ” With a child’s best interest at heart, parent’s are pushed to choose immediately after birth, and can ultimately lead to a life of identity and safety struggles for their child. A lot of parents express concerns towards the child rejecting the gender assigned to them after a medical procedure at birth, and physicians attempt to settle these fears by providing hormonal treatments to ensure that the gender they choose will “stick. ” (Timmermans, et al. 2019:1526). This not only creates problems for the child, but can create animosity between parents as this decision is not a simple one.
Parents may be informed that the external genitalia will be altered, but may be unaware of the child’s internal organs. Since intersex is complex and often comes in many different forms, a child may endure a sense of discomfort and struggle as their internal organs and makeup may have them feeling as a different gender than they appear externally.
Infants are at an extreme risk of having their human rights violated due to these processes following their birth. Without ill intentions from parents, there are questionable motives from the medical staff. The parents are responsible for giving consent to such procedures but with pressure from the medical staff, they typically give in (Behrens, 2020:2). Infants are without consent for the medical procedures being performed on them, and will later have to tackle the knowledge given to them about their physical bodies. Even as intersex children grow into adults, they are often at a higher risk for medical discrepencies being performed on them. Many times, adults who go into medical facilities for a routine checkup will have unnecessary medical procedures forced upon them in order to “correct” their differences (Carpenter, 2020:14). It is completely unethical and a large human rights violation to have non consensual individuals of any age, be given or coerced into a medical procedure that is completely unneeded. Regardless if these adults have undergone a sexual assignment surgery at birth or not, their parent’s intended “safety net” decision is never a guarantee that those children will be protected. This does not even begin to cover the legal discrepancies that these individuals face when going to fill out legal documents and forms; it is not as though there is a simple female or male box for them to check, as they might be both.
Intersex individuals have a hard time finding other people like them, since they are taught not to talk about their problems because it will cause them harm. While this is true, this only perpetuates the stigma and hushed attitude that leads more of the population to be heavily misinformed on what intersex means. It is often hard to find adequate research candidates with personal experience as an intersex individual, because of previous trauma or malpractice pushed upon them (RosenwohlMack, Tamar-Mattis, Baratz, Dalke, Ittelson, Zieselman, Flatt, 2020:3). The hidden identities of many intersex people makes a holistic study of this social, personal, and legal issue hard to conduct. This topic has started to become more mainstream knowledge, as the rise in gender fluidity has become slightly more acceptable, but is still largely misrepresented.
With malpractice and non consenting individuals constantly undergoing unnecessary medical procedures, it is hard to understand how to move forward. However, with a rise in activism starting mostly in the 1990’s, there is a push for recognition and a fight for intersex individuals’ human rights. In one truly inspiring case, Crawford v. Medical University of South Carolina, parents were able to sue for malpractice as their child underwent a surgery they were misinformed about and that was completely unneeded (Aboulafia, 2019:333). This case was won in favor of the parents, and may encourage others to fight for their rights in court. There clearly must be further prevention to stop these infractions of human rights before surgeries are performed. A method that could properly be instituted would be proposing an age in which intersex children are fully ready to determine and consent to a sexual assignment surgery depending on their feelings toward their gender (Behrens, 2020:6). There should be no medical procedures on a non consenting individual unless it is absolutely medically necessary. If children at the given age are satisfied with their physical makeup, and are not at an extreme health risk, they may choose to remain the way they are.
Depending on how the child is socialized, perhaps they would choose to conform to a specific gender and undergo a medical procedure. This would ensure that individuals are consenting and fully at an age where they may be able to decide. With most quick medical “solutions” and sexual assignment surgeries after birth, there are not many health risks that call for an immediate medical solution. In this case, there is no need for the surgery according to their health. Society as a whole needs to alter itself to become more accepting of intersex individuals, and physicians should leave their bias behind them when they walk into their jobs. This stigma and belief that everyone should fall specifically within a binary is not only damaging to intersex individuals, but is damaging to society as a whole for lack for acceptance can create significant problems.
One of the largest medical concerns is “ ...congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), a potentially life-threatening endocrine disorder that is also the most commonly diagnosed cause of atypical genitalia” (Palmer, 2019:148). This disorder is often very easily treatable and largely does not call for a specific gender assignment surgery for intersex newborns. It is however often used as a justification for a healthcare provider to carry out a procedure that is completely unnecessary and should be left to the intersex child to decide at a point in which they are able. The advancements made with this disorder have proven that changing the outward appearances of genitalia has no point in continuing, as intersex people who have been treated for CAH isolated from surgery have proven perfectly healthy (Palmer, 2019:148). Misinforming patients and treating them without necessity is a clear violation of human rights.
In a research article titled A National Study on the Physical and Mental Health of Intersex Adults in the U.S., more than half of the individuals questioned reported to have poor mental health because of their trauma (Rosenwohl-Mack, et al. 2020:7). It is largely important to understand the stress that intersex adults have gone through in order to survive. Although many intersex people are told that their case is rare, that is far from the truth. There are many intersex individuals hidden within society because of the tumultuous stigma and trauma they have been through that has taught them to be ashamed of themselves. There needs to be more information provided within the education systems in order to truly create a larger understanding of intersex lives, and end the stigma that this characteristic is abnormal or wrong.
Within the family, intersex children are often socialized to behave in their specific gender binary that they have been assigned at birth. This can inevitably cause a great sense of confusion for intersex children. If these children were able to wait and choose their time of surgery, if any, it could potentially ease up the tensions within these families. Gender identity can often be a struggle for any given person, but to have been born as an intersex person and have to navigate a world with a gender that was picked for them by their parents can create animosity and family struggles. Although the parent’s may have had the best interests of their child in mind, children are likely to resent their parents for making this choice for them. While parents are attempting to think ahead under the pressure of medical professionals, they are coerced into agreeing to a procedure before they themselves are fully aware of the condition. Of course, depending on the family a child is born into, there may be less acceptance towards gender fluidity and may cause problems additionally to this issue.
Many intersex individuals are given different reasons for why certain procedures are being pushed on them by medical staff. Cancer is often used as a means to get rid of internal sex organs on patients, or certain hormonal pills are pushed on them in order to create the female or male ideal. In a paradox, transgender individuals are often fighting for their rights to sexual reassignment surgeries and hormone procedures, while intersex individuals are being forced to undergo such treatments. This by in large creates a massive sense of confusion for intersex individuals and contributes greatly to their identity struggles. It is already hard enough for many children who prescribe to a gender identity that is different from their sexual characteristics, but to be a child born with unclear sexual organs and genitalia, it can be even harder. As the LGBTQIA+ community has to navigate society and face their families, parents who know the condition of their child may have a larger struggle in creating a relationship with them. Not only are these people undergoing stigma and malpractice, but the strong sense of not knowing where they belong is a horrendous weight to carry. “Since the 1950s, medical care for intersex people has centered around surgical interventions in infancy” without properly informed consent (Rosenwohl-Mack, et al. 2020:2). This malpractice is not only unethical, but can lead to serious mental health issues that can break down intersex people’s morale. At no point should a medical professional be forcing an individual to undergo a process unless it is specifically a medical necessity or true desire. Isolating intersex individuals into a secret area is extremely damaging to them and often can lead to depression, anxiety, and suicide. These procedures can often be a “violation of their bodily integrity and reproductive rights” as these assignment surgeries may cause problems with reproductive abilities in their later life (Tell, 2014:8).
In an effort to protect the human rights of intersex children, many health organizations and nongovernmental organizations have “ ...recognized the highly invasive, personally violating nature of surgery that irreversibly imposes a gender assignment on children, without regard to their future possible gender identities or sexual orientations” (Garland, Slokenberga, 2018:484). There needs to be a serious call to action within medical facilities in changing the narrative against intersex people being different and wrong. There should be no bias from medical staff when treating patients, and the individual's consent and awareness on the medical procedures being performed on them should be fully present. In order to end the stigma and exclusivity of these people groups, there needs to be continuation of activism and more comprehensive education on these anomalies. With a larger understanding of what intersex means and what these individuals must go throughout their lives with, there will be a better basis for informed situations between parents and medical professionals. When faced with a situation like this, parents will hopefully be able to approach the situation with understanding and realize that their child’s differences make them important.
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Immediate Concerns
Physical Safety: Confirm that the individual is in a secure location. Be emotionally available to them and encourage them to seek more help.
Medical Attention: If the assault occurred within five days, hospital professionals can also provide treatment for suspected sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), medication to prevent pregnancy (emergency contraception), and an exam to collect evidence.
Reporting the Assault: If the survivor goes to the hospital, the hospital will most likely make a report with the police. The victim, on the other hand, is not required to speak with the police in order to have a forensic examination. The survivor can choose whether or not to speak with the authorities later.
What can you do?
A victim's well-being depends on effective communication. Here are some options if you're not sure what to do:
Maintain your calm: Although you may be startled or upset, expressing your feelings to the survivor may bring confusion or pain. Maintain discretion: Allow the survivor to choose who to inform about the assault. Believe in the victim: Make it clear that you feel the assault occurred and that they are not to blame. Give the victim the upper hand. During the assault, control was taken away. Allow the survivor to make decisions regarding their healing.
Recognizing Sexual Violence
Any unwanted sexual touch qualifies as sexual violence. This includes sexually suggestive words and behaviors. Sexual violence can be a result of oppression. Inequality is linked to sexual violence. Without the survivor's knowledge, sexual violence can be committed. Age, cognitive limitations, mental illness, incapacitation due to drugs and/or alcohol, and other conditions, for example, can make it difficult for a person to recognize that sexual assault has been done against them. Institutions and people in positions of authority are regularly complicit in sexual violence. Even after it has been discovered by family members, friends, or other community members, sexual abuse is sometimes overlooked or allowed to continue.
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What can you do to prevent sexual violence?
Create a safe environment for children. For example, getting comfortable talking about their bodies and physical growth with the children in their lives, and respecting when a child refuses to give or receive physical love such as a hug, kiss, or "high-five" — even from a family member. Encourage positive encounters and relationships. Create a safe environment for everyone. This can range from quietly telling your friend not to make offensive comments to publicly intervening during an argument or quarrel.
Resources
A variety of resources- https://www.rainn.org/national-resources-sexual-assault-survivors-andtheir-loved-ones National Sexual Assault Hotline- 800.656.HOPE National Child Abuse Hotline- 800.422.4453 National Domestic Violence Hotline- 800.799.SAFE National Human Trafficking Resource Center- 888.373.7888 National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center- 844.762.8483 GLBT National Hotline- 888.THE.GLNH (843.4564) National Eating Disorder Helpline- 800.931.2237
