A couple has just filed two lawsuits on behalf of their son. When he was an infant, the hospital made the decision that he would grow up female after he was born with both male and female reproductive organs; however, their son self identifies as a boy. They are demanding compensation for the rights to choose who he would become that were stolen from him.
Eight years ago, a child identified as M.C. was born with male and female reproductive organs. When he was 20 months old, the doctors performed a sex change surgery that removed the male organ and decided for the child that it would grow up female.
M.C.’s adopted parents, Pam and Mark Crawford have filed two lawsuits; one against the Medical University of South Carolina, Greenville Hospital System and the other against the South Carolina Department of Social Services in response to the consequences of the operation that their son endured as an infant.
Pam Crawford explains how the surgery was unnecessary as there were no medical problems associated with how M.C. was born; the surgery was simply performed because the hospital felt that the child was wrong. But the doctors chose a woman’s life for M.C. and he identifies as male.
The Crawfords adopted M.C. shortly after the surgery. They were aware of his situation and understood that M.C. was to be raised as a girl, but that immediately changed. Their son recognized that he was male and made a declaration to his parents and to his friends that he was no longer going to be a girl. He would dress and act like a boy, and wanted them to treat him that way. He has received incredible support.
The lawsuits claim that the surgery has robbed M.C. of his Fourteenth Amendment rights. The operation was performed with no medical reasoning and it took away his right to choose who he would become. M.C. is eight years old, and he already comprehends that the doctors chose wrong for his life.
The surgery, they claim, took away M.C.’s healthy genital tissue that he can never get back; and may have sterilized him and denied him sexual function.
The lawsuits are fighting for M.C.’s rights that were taken away from him when he was less than a year old. They are also accusing the hospital of medical malpractice as no one of proper consent was involved in the decision regarding the surgery or the results.
The Crawfords understand that they cannot erase what has happened to their son, but they can help in restoring his human rights. They also are striving to eliminate this unfortunate situation for future babies with M.C.’s condition. Approximately 1 out of 2,000 children are born with hermaphroditism; and though the amount is not is not exceptionally common, it is still significant enough to work for changes on those children’s behalf.
It is unclear how far this case will go and what modifications will be made from it, but it is something that will make a difference and may set precedents. Because of these lawsuits, the wellbeing and future of the children who are born with both male and female genitalia will be given higher concern.
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