On June 15, 2022, President Biden signed Executive Order E.O. 14075 , Advancing Equity for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Individuals. The Executive Order directed HHS to issue a report on promising practices for advancing health equity for intersex individuals.
Image has text that says, “Submit your comments about intersex issues to the US HHS Dept. Comments due by: 4pm (CST) March 13th. Contact us for more info: TheHoustonIntersexSociety@gmail.com” There is a yellow and purple border around the image. At the bottom right corner is a picture of a yellow and purple cartoon snail.
The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is in the early stages of preparing a report on promising practices for advancing health equity for intersex individuals. The overarching purpose of the report is to ensure access to affirming, high-quality care for intersex people who live in the US.
Through this Request for Information (RFI), the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), Department of Health & Human Services, invites feedback from stakeholders throughout the scientific research community, clinical practice communities, patient and family advocates, scientific or professional organizations, federal partners, internal HHS stakeholders, and other interested constituents on the development of a report on promising practices for advancing health equity for intersex individuals.
The overarching purpose of the report on the promising practices for advancing health equity for intersex individuals is to ensure access to affirming, high-quality care for intersex people who live in America.
The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health’s Request for Information is open for public comment for a period of 4 weeks. Comments must be received on or before 4 p.m. (CT) on March 13, 2023, to ensure consideration.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
We’re looking for Intersex Research! We want to publish your research!
Image has a yellow background with Purple circles. At the top are the words “We are publishing” in white and the words “your research” in blue text with a green box background. Under the green box are the words “Intersex based data. Rejected from other publications. Will be archived in the Library of Congress*” At the left of the text is a white hand with a green sleeve holding a megaphone. At the bottom of the image it says, “For more info: thehoustonintersexsociety@gmail.com”. At the very bottom of the image is the notation “*inclusion in the Library of Congress historic collection of materials related to the LGBTQ+ studies web archive”
We’re looking for researchers who have recent research (past 5 years) with data relating to intersex people and physical/mental/sexual health, medical/surgical satisfaction outcomes, and more.
We are particularly interested in research that has found difficulty in traditional methods of publishing.
Researchers must be willing to participate in a short interview about their experience conducting the research and publishing attempts.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
If you didn’t catch the announcement on our website, here is our newest ‘world’s first’ endeavor: The World’s First Intersex Community Center!
Image is of a white and blue 2-story townhouse style building. On the lower left is a door with a black gate and mailbox. In front of the door are 3 steps and a concrete walkway. To the right of the door is a large window with blue shutters on the ground floor. There are 2 big bushes, one on either side of the window. Above the window is a blue balcony with a sliding glass door and black decorative railing.
We’ve acquired a townhouse style building that will be updated and utilized as a community center for educational endeavors, arts events, social & support meetings, and temporary lodging for out-of-town guests.
The building needs some cosmetic work inside, painting, and replacing of old carpet; as well as plans for a ramp for accessibility access on the outside.
Weβre excited to get to work on this new endeavor and hope that it will be an inspiration to other intersex folks to create similar Intersex empowering community spaces, especially ones in non-medical settings.
Here’s some pics of our progress so far.
Image of a brown 1″ x 1″ mosaic wood tile parquet floor. On the left is multicolored carpet padding. On the right is red carpet padding.
While pulling up the old carpet, we discovered a mosaic 1″x1″ wood tile floor. Instead of replacing the carpet, we’re keeping the vintage floor.
Image of a Latina with dark brown hair in a braid. She is wearing a grey t-shirt and black pants with black shoes. She is wearing work gloves and a blue dust mask. She is holding carpet in one hand and using a tool to cut it in the other. Text at the bottom of the image says, “Working on the new community center! Jen demonstrated how to use the carpet cutter.” Below the text is a yellow heart with a purple ring int the center.
Thanks to all our volunteers that helped rip up carpet, pull up staples, and fill trash bags.
AWESOME VOLUNTEER TEAM: Koomah Jennifer Ricky Stephen Mel Stephanie
Next, we will paint the interior!
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image of a 2 panel comic. On the top panel, 3 purple snails with yellow shells are watching the new year countdown on TV. They say, “3, 2, 1…”. On the bottom panel they shout, “Happy new year!” and blow so their shells uncurl like a noisemaker.
As we close out 2022, we want to acknowledge our grant funders for this past year and highlight some of the things we accomplished.
Koomah was invited to the White House Pride celebration and executive order signing.
Koomah participated in a roundtable discussion with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services honoring Intersex Awareness Day.
Made the world’s first Intersex themed ArtCar.
Presented talks to Universities
Archives Talk for HCC about our Intersex History Archive.
Mo presented an Intersex 101 for the SAGA student group at UH Downtown
Koomah presented on a panel for medical students and medical professionals at State University of New York (SUNY) Stony Brook.
Presented on an educational panel to the Oregon Department of Human Services.
ODHS is now working to update their system to recognize people’s names and pronouns even if that info hasn’t been updated with the DMV or SSA.
Attended the national InterConnect intersex conference in Niagara Falls, New York.
Koomah presented a workshop on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.
Attended Pride Events
Participated in Houston Pride with new signs and t-shirts.
Mo tabled a booth at Beaumont Pride Festival.
Presented talks to local organizations
Educated HATCH youth about intersex issues.
Koomah spoke to LGBT Political Caucus about intersex issues.
Koomah did an interview on Queer Voices for Intersex Awareness Day.
Finished writing a feature length intersex themed screenplay.
Screenplay submitted for copyright.
Image has a yellow and purple border. Inside is text that says, βHelp us continue our work. The Houston Intersex Society is an all volunteer BIPOC-led Houston based grassroots nonprofit intersex organization. It is the only intersex organization in Texas.β At the bottom left corner is a yellow and purple cartoon snail. The snail has a speech bubble to the left that says, βIntersexHouston.comβ At the top right is a black and white QR code that says βdonateββ underneath it.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image has purple and yellow borders with a yellow circle inside a purple square. At the corners are purple and yellow stars. In the center are purple balloons that are the number 10. It says, “10th Anniversary”.
The Houston Intersex Society was founded 10 years ago today!
Both co-founders of The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) knew each other as teenagers in an LGBTQ+ youth group called HATCH, but because of shame, stigma, and secrecy, neither one of us was publicly open about our intersex status. We were both isolated and in need of community and felt like the only intersex person that existed. Several years later (thanks to social media!) we reconnected as adults at a local community center. When we learned that we had both felt the same isolation while sitting next to each other every Friday night for years as teenagers; we decided to create an organization that very day.
10 years later , and we’ve accomplished more than we ever imagined!
When we first founded our organization, we spent the first few years trying to figure out what kind of organization we needed to be and what kind of representation and services we wanted to provide to our community.
As most organizations were social and support groups, we initially designed our organization to be similar. Our first events were weekly meetings held at the TG Center. Due to low turnout we changed to monthly meetings. What we found was that we were being contacted by intersex people who were glad to see we existed, but they didn’t want to go to a group or be publicly out. It seemed that the need was more in visibility and education.
We established ourselves as an educational and awareness organization.
We recreated our organization to be visible to other intersex people, to advocate for those intersex individuals unable to advocate for themselves, to encourage legislation to protect intersex bodies, and to educate medical providers so they can provide adequate care to intersex people. For our intersex community, the most pressing issues are ending medically unnecessary genital surgeries on intersex minors, ensuring access to adequate competent healthcare, and creating legal protections.
THISβs mission of improving the quality of life for intersex people is accomplished by engaging in advocacy, outreach, education, and visibility through the arts.
We prioritize traditionally under-served people within an already marginalized community and focus on the accessibility needs of intersex people in racial and class demographics that are often overlooked by larger intersex organizations.
THIS provides direct patient advocacy, emergency assistance, and supports community development by hosting regular events and arts programming that increase visibility and awareness. Additionally, THIS hosts an intersex history and art archive and organizes art projects as βiPOCA Collectiveβ (intersex People of Color Artists Collective).
By meeting with officials, assisting with intersex related research projects, educating policy makers, and developing innovative intersex arts programming; THIS has paved the way for meaningful change in the services the community relies upon.
Celebrating our ongoing history of world firsts!
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society is the first intersex organization in Texas.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
The Houston Intersex Society is the first intersex organization in Texas.
We are currently the only intersex organization in Texas and the southern gulf states.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “Houston City Hall First government building in the world illuminated for Intersex Awareness Day.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
In 2015, we coordinated for Houston City Hall to be illuminated for Intersex Awareness Day. It was the very first time that a government building anywhere in the world was illuminated for Intersex Awareness Day. Since then, it has become an annual tradition in Houston, and many other cities in the US and around the world have followed in having their local government buildings illuminated. In recent years, we’ve also added the bridges over US-59 to our illuminations.
In 2017, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner issued a proclamation declaring October 25th as Intersex Awareness Day in Houston. This date was selected to commemorate the date of the first Houston City Hall illumination.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society created the first Intersex Film & Performance Festival.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
“I’s Not Invisible” was the title of our Intersex Film and performance festival. It was held at Frenetic Theater/The Pilot on Navigation and featured short narrative films, documentaries, animation, experimental films with live performance, spoken word, and movement pieces.
We also had a segment where people could write questions upon entering the event and we would answer them while hosting throughout the night. We gave away a door prize of 2 books, “Bodies in Doubt: An American History of Intersex” by Elizabeth Reis and “Contesting Intersex: The Dubious Diagnosis” by Georgiann Davis.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society made the world’s first TV special for Intersex Awareness Day.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
In 2019, we collaborated with a TV production studio to produce an Intersex Awareness Day variety show style TV special. This production included different acts, music, dance, spoken word, and short films. We filmed it in front of a live studio audience.
This TV special has become part of our annual Intersex Awareness Day events and continues to air on TV (with online stream) every year on October 26th, alongside the airing of the stage production “History of a Happy Hermaphrodite”.
One of the featured performances of our annual Intersex Awareness Day TV special is this song, “My Body” by Andrew Shell.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society administered the only intersex specific COVID Relief Fund.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it created a lot of financial strain for people, from lost income as a result of reduced work hours, lost jobs, illness, medical bills, funeral costs, and more. Recent research shows that intersex people are more likely to be underemployed, be in poorer overall health, and face housing/food insecurity compared to their endosex (non-intersex) peers.
While many COVID mutual aid funds were created by several different community groups, we heard stories of intersex people who were being denied aid by LGB and Trans specific COVID funds when they identified themselves as intersex but not LGB or Trans.
We expanded our small immediate needs emergency grant to have a COVID relief fund by creating a unique online application process and follow-up phone/zoom screening to provide community members with small COVID relief grants.
We were able to help intersex individuals and families in both the US and in Canada. Some feedback we received let us know that intersex individuals utilized the funds to pay overdue utility bills, purchase groceries, pay rent/mortgages. For some, the grant literally made the difference between them staying housed or becoming homeless.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society participated in the first Intersex roundtable with the White House.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society made the world’s first intersex artcar!” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
Introducing the WORLDS FIRST INTERSEX ARTCAR!
After several days of hard work in blazing Houston summer temperatures, Koomah painted and decorated a 2007 4-door Toyota Yaris sedan, transforming it into an Intersex Awareness ARTcar! Thanks to some painting assistance from our Treasurer Jennifer and a little bit of sanding from Mo, we were able to get it finished in time for Houston Pride.
Image of a car painted yellow with purple bumpers. The yellow section has purple squiggles and there is a large 3D cartoon snail sculpture on the roof. There is a purple circle painted on the yellow hood of the car like an intersex pride flag. The hubcaps are yellow.
More than just for cool looks and intersex awareness, the future goal of this creation is to provide transportation for intersex community members who are accessing healthcare in the Houston Medical Center, transporting us to speaking engagements at universities, conferences, and educational endeavors at the capitol in Austin.
Checkout our Instagram for photos of the process of making the ArtCar.
Image has a yellow and purple border. In the center are the words, “The Houston Intersex Society will open the world’s first Intersex Community Center!” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
That’s right!
This year we acquired a townhome style building which will be updated and utilized as a community center for educational endeavors, arts events, social & support meetings, and as temporary lodging for out-of-town guests.
Image is of a white and blue 2-story townhouse style building. On the lower left is a door with a black gate and mailbox. In front of the door are 3 steps and a concrete walkway. To the right of the door is a large window with blue shutters on the ground floor. There are 2 big bushes, one on either side of the window. Above the window is a blue balcony with a sliding glass door and black decorative railing.
The building needs some cosmetic work inside, painting, and replacing of old carpet; as well as plans for a ramp for accessibility access on the outside.
We’re excited to get to work on this new endeavor and hope that it will be an inspiration to other intersex folks to create similar Intersex empowering community spaces, especially ones in non-medical settings.
Image has a yellow and purple border.On the right is a QR code. On the left are the words, “Donate to the Houston Intersex Society” In the bottom right corner is a purple and yellow cartoon snail.
If you appreciate our work, please consider supporting us with a donation.
We are a very small organization that is all volunteer and 100% BIPOC-led.
Our grant funding is minimal, expenses are often several times the available grant funds which means the majority of our work is accomplished with out-of-pocket costs.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image is of an intersex flag with a yellow background with a purple ring in the center. Inside the purple ring is a red ribbon.
December 1st is World AIDS Day.
It is a day we remember those we’ve lost, keep working to end POZ stigma, and continue having discussions about HIV/AIDS.
A lot of the discussion is centered on access and disparities of marginalized communities in regards to testing and medication.
Some things to consider regarding HIV/AIDS and access for the intersex community:
–There is no research and information on HIV (and other STI) infection rates within the intersex community.
– Intersex people were specifically excluded from PReP and HIV vaccine medication trials. Intersex people rejected from trials were told it was due to their intersex body as trials were only including cis men and trans women.
– Medications that have only been approved for those assigned male at birth can be difficult for intersex people to access.
–Research shows Intersex people have higher rates of homelessness, underemployment, and drug use than their endosex (non-intersex) peers. These factors relate to higher infection rates in communities where HIV/AIDS statistics exist.
–Intersex people have difficulty accessing competent healthcare providers for general and sexual health, including at LGBTQ community clinics.
– Intersex people with histories of medical trauma are more likely to avoid seeking healthcare even when they are ill. This includes avoiding testing and treatment for HIV/AIDS.
– Some intersex variations cause a pre-existing autoimmune deficiency. Access to HIV testing, diagnosis, and treatment is critical for these intersex individuals.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image has a yellow and purple border. Inside is text that says, “Help us continue our work. The Houston Intersex Society is an all volunteer BIPOC-led Houston based grassroots nonprofit intersex organization. It is the only intersex organization in Texas.” At the bottom left corner is a yellow and purple cartoon snail. The snail has a speech bubble to the left that says, “IntersexHouston.com” At the top right is a black and white QR code that says “donate”‘ underneath it.
THE HOUSTON INTERSEX SOCIETY (THIS) aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
We created our organization with the intention to be visible to other intersex people, to advocate for those intersex individuals unable to advocate for themselves, to encourage legislation to protect intersex bodies, and to educate medical providers so they can provide adequate care to intersex people. For our intersex community, the most pressing issues are ending medically unnecessary genital surgeries on intersex minors, ensuring access to adequate competent healthcare, and creating legal protections.
THISβs mission of improving the quality of life for intersex people is accomplished by engaging in advocacy, outreach, education, and visibility through the arts.
We prioritize traditionally under-served people within an already marginalized community and focus on the accessibility needs of intersex people in racial and class demographics that are often overlooked by larger intersex organizations.
THIS provides direct patient advocacy, emergency assistance, and supports community development by hosting regular events and arts programming that increase visibility and awareness. Additionally, THIS hosts an intersex history and art archive and organizes art projects as βiPOCA Collectiveβ (intersex People of Color Artists Collective).
By meeting with officials, assisting with intersex related research projects, educating policy makers, and developing innovative intersex arts programming; THIS has paved the way for meaningful change in the services the community relies upon.
THE HOUSTON INTERSEX SOCIETY was founded in December of 2012, this is our 10 year anniversary. Over the last 10 years we’ve accomplished some amazing things beyond what we ever imagined. We’ve had several WORLD’S 1st achievements from the world’s first government building illuminated for intersex awareness day (Houston City Hall), first intersex specific scholarship fund, first Intersex Awareness Day TV Special, the only intersex specific COVID relief fund, first intersex themed ArtCar, and more.
We have another WORLD’S 1st achievement soon to be announced, stay tuned for that official announcement later this month!
Despite all of these accomplishments, we are severely underfunded. Our out-of-pocket expenses are several times more than our available funding.
We can sustain our current work and expand our services with your support!
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
We had some speaking opportunities around Intersex Awareness day.
OCTOBER 26th
Image of an intersex person’s head and shoulder by a sign. they have tan skin, black tufts of hair at their temples, and have black asymmetrical glasses. They are wearing a black COVID mask, white shirt, black pearls, and a black polka dot jacket. The sign says, “Hubert H Humphrey building, 200 Independence Ave, SW, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.”
On October 26th, (Intersex Awareness Day) one of our co-founders, Koomah participated in a roundtable discussion in Washington DC with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services honoring Intersex Awareness Day.
The roundtable was hosted by the HHS LGBTQI+ Coordinating Committee, with leadership from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health and the Office for Civil Rights.
OCTOBER 25th
A Latino intersex man is standing behind a desk with a computer on it. He has tan skin, short brown hair, and black angular glasses. He is wearing a green t-shirt and blue jeans. His right hand is in his pocket. Behind him is a projection screen on a dark blue wall. On the screen is an image of a QR code.
On October 25th, one of our co-founders, Mo Cortez gave a presentation about intersex issues and advocacy to the SAGA student group at University of Houston downtown.
Mo was honored to present for SAGA as an alumni of UHD. Student response was amazing and they had some great questions!
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image is a flyer that lists various Intersex Awareness Day 2022 events. On the top left is text that says, “Intersex Awareness Day”. Top middle is a yellow flag with a purple ring in the center. Inside the ring is a white shape of Texas. The flag say, “The Houston Intersex Society” in black letters. On the top left is text that says, “2022 events”. The text in the center is dates/times/locations of events and is listed in the text box below. There is a 3d purple and yellow cartoon snail mascot in the lower left corner. The snail has a speech bubble that says, “intersexhouston.com”. The frame of the flyer is yellow and purple.
Events for 2022 Intersex Awareness Day!
October 25th Intersex 101 4:30pm @ UH Downtown SAGA student group
October 25th & 26th IAD Illumination Houston City Hall and Bridges over US-59
October 26th Interview on Queer Voices 8pm on 90.1 KPFT KPFT.org or listen via podcast: Apple podcast, Spotify, Google podcast
October 26th IAD TV Special 4pm (CT) & 9pm (CT) HMSTV.org
October 26th ‘History of a Happy Hermaphrodite’ 5pm (CT) & 8pm (CT) HMSTV.org
Tune in to HMS TV in Houston: Comcast channel 17 ATT U-Verse channel 99 Suddenlink channel 99 Phonoscope channel 96
The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
The Houston Intersex Society co-founders Mo and Koomah participated on a LGBTQI+ History Month panel at Houston Community College about the importance of community archives and archiving. We were joined by JD Doyleof JD Doyle Archives (Queer Music Heritage, Texas Obituary Project, Houston LGBT History, etc) along with Vince Lee and Joyce Gabiola of UH Special Collections.
Image of 2 booklets from The Intersex History Archive. On the left is a grey booklet with red letters titled “Confessions of a hermaphrodite”. On the left is a blue booklet with purple letters titled “Sexology”. One of the article listings in the Sexology booklet is “What makes males, females, and intersex.”
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
Image is of an event program. The booklet is white with a rainbow burst in the center. At the top are the words “The Caucus” in black. Over the rainbow burst are the white words, “13th annual equality brunch. Not Going Back. Presented by Texas State Senator John Whitmire” with a gold frame around them. The booklet is on a tablecloth. There are knives and spoons around it.
When we awarded Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia the Intersex Advocacy Award at the Unity Banquet, she was unable to attend and sent a representative to accept the award on her behalf. We were quite surprised when she reached out to us and invited us to attend the Equality Brunch event as her guests. It was a great event and we were inspired by all the work others are doing to make change and promote equality for all.
Koomah and Mo, co-founders of The Houston Intersex Society standing in front of a banner that says “The Caucus”. Koomah is an intersex person with tan skin, tufts of black hair at their temples, black asymmetrical glasses, and a black COVID facemask. Koomah is wearing a black shirt with silver metal fringe across the neck under a black button-up shirt. They are wearing white and black animal print pants and black shoes with metal spikes. Mo is an intersex man with tan skin, brown hair, and black angular glasses. He is wearing a purple and white checkered button up shirt, black pants with a brown belt, and brown shoes.
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The Houston Intersex Society (THIS) is an all-volunteer BIPOC led Houston-based grassroots non-profit organization for, by, and about intersex people. THIS aims to empower and enrich the lives of intersex people while working to end shame and create visibility through education, community events, and the arts.
