Name: Centeno, Danakey F.

Date: 11/27/21 Course and Section: BSP 3E SSP101c

Title: MIDTERM EXAM

1. What is your sex assigned at birth and sex characteristics? What is your SOGIE? Give

explanation to show how you were able to tell that that is your SOGIE.

- I was born with female internal and external genitalia as well as the hormones and

chromosomes assigned to a female. I am a ciswoman-heterosexual wherein I enjoy

being feminine type who wears girly outfits, keeping my hair long, comfortable

being graceful or gentle and other traditional traits cited as feminine. I also have a

romantic, emotional and sexual attraction towards my opposite sex.

2. What is the sex assigned at birth and sex characteristics of Alicia Roth Weigel? What

is Alicia's SOGIE? Point out information that made you think that that is Alicia's

SOGIE. If there's no way of knowing from the podcast episode, please indicate that

there is no way of knowing from the podcast.

- Alice stated in the podcast that their bodies was born literally intersex between the

sexes so Alice cannot be categorize as male or female. Alice Roth Weigel was born

intersex wherein instead of having uterus and ovaries, Alice was born with internal

testes and chromosomes assigned to a male. However, in the podcast episode,

Alice’s SOGIE was not disclose.

3. What is the main thing, with regards to Alicia's sex characteristics and SOGIE, that

made Alicia feel broken or that there is something wrong about Alicia especially when

Alicia was younger? Who made Alicia feel there is something wrong about Alicia?

- Because there is no space, acknowledgement and humility to people who was born

intersex, Alice was forced sterilized when infant wherein they took Alice’s testes
 that lead to stop Alice’s body to produce certain hormones that Alice’s body needs.

When Alice became teenager, an endocrinologist gave advice to Alice parents for

Alice to undergo a surgery and choose between the two sexes to “fix” Alice sex

because they viewed intersex as “not normal”. Because of the existing stigma in

our society about being intersex, I think that factor had a great impact in Alicia’s

life that made Alicia feel that there is something wrong with Alicia. Aside from

that, the doctors should in the first place tell that there is no need to “fix” Alice sex

characteristics because it was normal and it is okay to be intersex.

4. What makes Trans people, with regards to their sex characteristics and SOGIE, made

them feel like they are broken or that there is something wrong about them? Who made

them feel that there is something wrong about them?

- Being a Transgender, your gender identity, gender expression, or behavior does not

correspond to that commonly associated with the sex to which you were born. I

think that is a factor why Trans feel like they are broken, different, and not belong

to any group in the society. Many transgender people feel or have felt shame for

reasons connected to their SOGIE at some time in their lives just because of the

stigma and other people made them feel that way. Because of the existing norm,

the society looked negatively to Trans people just because they are unique and does

not conform to any norms set by other people.

5. What makes you, with regards to your sex characteristics and SOGIE, that made you

feel like you are broken or that there is something wrong about you? Who made you

feel that way is something wrong about you? 

 - Due to the internet and social media, there are times that I feel like there is

something wrong about me. Because of the standards set by the “social media

stars” on how a woman should dress, behave or looks like, I repeatedly exposing

myself to the “ideal” body type, to a point that I harmed my body image and my

mental health by always comparing myself to unattainable expectations. I always

cry because I am scared that nobody will like me in the future because I am far

behind those social media standards.

6. Can you change or correct the thing about your sex characteristics or SOGIE that you

makes you feel there is something wrong about you? If you try to change or correct it,

will you have a better chance of being accepted into the society?

- I want to be honest and say that there are thoughts in my head that I want to change

a lot of things about myself just to fit in to those standards set by the internet and

the society. However, as day passed by, I said to myself that “why will I correct

something if it’s not wrong in the first place?”. If I try to change my gender

identity or gender expression, I think I will be accepted by the society but I will

never be happy and free because it is not the real me. Therefore, I choose not to

change anything about my SOGIE, about myself and start to love and accept whom

I really am which far from the standards and stereotypes set by other people.

7. How is Alicia's experience based on Alicia's biological sex and sex characteristics

same with Trans kids and adults? How is it different?

- I think there is a little difference between the experience of Trans and intersex just

like Alicia. There are some situation when an intersex kid's parents or doctors

determine that their child's body should correspond to traditional concepts of male
 or female, and the child is force to undergo normalizing surgery without their

agreement, the child does not consent to the surgical change of their body just like

what happened to Alicia. Not like to Trans people that when a Trans chooses a

specific hormonal or surgical therapy or wishes to live as a gender different from

the one given to them, they agree to this medical care and have their consent.

8.  How is your experience based on you sex characteristics and SOGIE same with Alicia

and Trans people? How is it different?

- Regardless of what is your SOGIE, the discrimination, stereotypes and the norms

of the society will continue to affect you. We can stop or do something about those

people who will look at us with judgmental eyes just because we are different and

do not fit in the standards they set. Therefore, I think that is one of the things how

my sex characteristics and SOGIE same with Alicia and Trans people are kind of

look the same.