After the events of Sept. 11 and subsequent harassment of Arabs I decided to move to France, where I lived and worked � also as a woman � before moving back to Saudi Arabia. I came back here as a man since on my passport and official papers I am still male. I didn�t tell my family what I had done, and my mother died without knowing the truth. Then one day I sat my eldest sister down and told her of my being a woman. She fainted from shock and woke up screaming abuse at me, accusing me of bringing shame on the family.
The next day I told my brother and sisters my secret, and they too hurled abuse at me � their parting words were: �You are not our brother and we don�t know you. We will never set foot in your house again.� They also threatened to take legal action to deprive me of half my inheritance, and they did.
story byAdnan Al-Katib Arab News 29, August,2003{It's real difficult for a lot of 'regular' folks. This isn't homosexuality here, at least as it's represented. A lot of gender confusion is getting represented as hermaphroditic being. They aren't the same. This isn't preverts, it's not anything but what it is. Something outside the strict limits of traditional superstition and codified ignorance. But just as real as anything else. Intersex people have to emphasize the distinction, they aren't transvestites or transexuals, not confused about who they are, other people are confused about what they are. It's as though the language had lost its word for it. He, she, and that. But when it's time to purify the race it doesn't matter much. All the freaks go. Natural unnatural physical psychological all.
Trying to combat that viciousness and still make distinctions is difficult.
'Can't help it.' That's a big one with kids. 'He can't help it.' Can't help it when it's the body, but the mind...the mind is hard to pin down. And whatever tests are given are so arcane, so mumbo-jumbo, it's all about faith, who you believe, what you want to believe.
Could help it but he's just too weak. But then he can't help being weak can he? Or can he? Where's the line?
Get right in there and push. Right there. Be as strong as you can possibly be. Cause it's all we have now.}
