The State Department announced that the USA had issued the passport with an “X” gender indication. The move marked a huge milestone for everyone who doesn’t identify themselves as female or male. Individual rights campaigners expect that by 2022, the option will be available to a more significant number of people.
The Associated Press spoke with Dana Zzyym (pronounced Zimm), a member of the Colorado intersex community, about the remarkable event. She stated in her interview that her legal battle with the State Department began in 2015. Zzyym refused to identify as male or female and insisted on the neutral pronoun in the passport. The Fort Collins activist was finally able to obtain the document that satisfied the unusual request.
WATCH the news coverage of it:
Zzyym got a phone call from the lawyer, Paul Castillo, who told all about the UPS package with the expected document. A 63-year-old threw an Intersex Awareness Day party with two other activists to celebrate the groundbreaking event.
The purpose of the legal battle, according to Zzyym, was to aid the future generation of intersex people. Zzyym’s tattoo, “Never give up,” is a reminder for everybody who faces similar challenges in life.
According to court documents, Zzyym was born with ambiguous sexual traits but raised as a boy. After going through several surgeries to appear fully male, Zzyym joined the Navy. This brave person felt compelled to join Intersex Organizations while at Colorado State University. Several trips around the organization’s meetings necessitated the use of a passport.
Mary Emily O’Hara of GLAAD, the LGBTQ organization, underlined the importance of intersex, nonbinary, and transgender people having appropriate documentation that reflects their authentic self.