The Registrar of New South Wales sent Norrie May-Welby a birth certificate stating hir gender-- none. Then, under pressure from the attorney general's office, a representative from the Office of Births, Deaths and Marriages called hir and said they were cancelling the certificate.
"I am devastated by the news. It is a hideous, humiliating position to find myself in and makes a mockery of my human rights," May-Welby told Australian newspaper The Star Observer (http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/2010/03/18/norrie-backflip-a-breach-of-rights/22950).
May-Welby is not psychologically or physically a woman or man. Doctors have declared hir genderless, but much more importantly zie does not see these labels as fitting hir. Additionally, zie is concerned about traveling with documents declaring hir male or female and then being harrassed or detained for not fitting the description.
Tell the government of New South Wales to make good on their promise! Their original decision agrees with May-Welby's rights rights to self-determine hir social identity under the United Nations Charter of Human Rights.
Please re-grant May-Welby's genderless official documents
Greetings,
I am writing to urge you to re-certify the documents Australian citizen Norrie May-Welby requested which read 'sex not specified.'
When the Office of Births, Deaths and Marriages rescinded this certificate, they dealt a serious blow to May-Welby's rights-- and those of all people who do not fit clearly into conventional gender terms.
Australia was about to make history by being the first country to legally recognize a genderless person, but this unfortunate decision passes that opportunity by.
Australia has signed the United Nations Charter of Human Rights, which enshrines the right of everyone to self-determine their own identities. More importantly, denying these documents makes life more difficult for an Australian citizen for no reason other than their decision to live honestly.
Thank you,
[Your name]