On Intersex Awareness Day we award “the Darling” in recognition of outstanding intersex allyship. Allyship gives life and energy to the intersex movement and makes us bigger than we can dream of. Waving our flag, supporting the Darlington Statement, recognition on a day like today all contributes to community understanding and we are grateful to those who add their voices to ours. With the Darling we look for the above and beyond, the contributions that don’t just embody intersex allyship, but fully realise the goals of our human rights movement and supports our community in material and meaningful ways. Creating resources, consulting and collaborating with our community, building that community with infrastructure all exemplify the Darling in previous years.
This year there was one remarkable piece of work that finally realised what the intersex community has been working towards for decades. Our heartfelt congratulations goes to the Office of LGBTIQA+ Affairs as part of the ACT department of Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate. In particular the team responsible for creating and delivering the Variation in Sex Characteristics (Restricted Medical Treatment) Bill 2023, the first intersex protective legislation in Australia. This piece of work doesn’t just protect intersex people in the ACT but sets a standard and starts new conversations right across Australia.
Statement by the Office of LGBTIQ+ Affairs
“The Office of LGBTIQ+ Affairs is very honoured to receive the Darling Award this year. This award is the culmination of four years of partnership with the intersex community, to develop a new framework of care for people with variations in sex characteristics, particularly young people. We hope our work helps set new standards for intersex care and rights. We value the Darling Award because it tells us we have engaged effectively with community, and that is essential to good policy-making.”
