Intersex: Wahala wey intersex pipo dey face for Nigeria
Producers: Onyinye Chime, Harry Itie & Samuel Agbaje Wen you hear di word intersex, wetin dey come your mind?
Dis tori na about two intersex Nigerians, James Johnson and Mystique Evolving, wey enta dis world wit man and woman organ. Out of evri 2000 pikin wey dem newly born, one get both man and woman organs. Sometimes di organs fit show from birth, oda times nobodi go eva know untill di pikin don grow. Why women footballers no dey collect di same winning moni as men? No record dey to show say intersex dey for Nigeria but dat no mean say dem no dey or say dem no plenti. Two intersex wey dey live inside Nigeria, share dia tori, including di plenti wahala wey dem dey face sake of dia condition. James Johnson Na wit man and woman organ dem born James Johnson, but im parents decide say im na girl and dem call am Iyabo Abade. James no too understand say im dey different until 1997-1998 wen im dey national camp as Nigeria women football league dey prepare for Africa cup of nations and Fifa World Cup. Iyabo Abade leave women football afta she discover for national camp say too much difference dey between am and di oda women As small pikin, Iyabo begin play football from the age of 10 years. He live im life for 19 years as woman, before he decide say di difference between him and oda women wey im see for di women team too much and im no fit continue. James Johnson say before now im dey tink say im "no be human being" becos im get man and woman organ. From di different medical test dem wey im bin do, result show say im na 70% man and 30% woman. So, James choose to become man. Mystique Evolving From di day wey dem born Mystique, di sex organ outside her body show say she na man. But as she dey grow, her voice no change to baritone, her skin dey soft and smooth like woman. Mystique family dey accuse her say she na gay. Her shape kwanu? Na woman own. For secondary school her family begin accuse her say she "na gay." But Mystique say, even though her family bin dey accuse her say she na gay, "I know say dat no be who I be." As she dey grow, she come get breast like woman. She discover say she dey always get pains for di right or left side of her abdomen once evri month. Wen she go hospital, test result show say she get two ovaries inside her but she no get womb. Doctor tell her say, di pain wey she dey feel evri month na ovulation pains but she no dey menstruate. James don forget evritin wey remind am of wen im be Iyabo except for few pishure Challenges wey dem dey face Di major wahala wey evri intersex pesin dey face for Nigeria, na di wahala of discrimination from family and society. Many Nigerians no sabi wetin intersex be, some dey see am as witchcraft wey need deliverance or wey dem suppose stone to death. Odas dey see dem as pipo wey dem curse. Dis na why many of dem dey hide sake of fear of how society go take react to dem. Mystique say for more dan 10 years except for one of her brodas, all her family members don abandon her. "Di last time wey I bin see dem, dem almost kee me. Dem beat me, cut my hair, kick me for ground," na so she tok. As for James case, im dey lucky say im get support from im family. But di discrimination wey im face for football world afta im turn to man, na im end im career as star player for Nigeria football. Afta im leave women football for 1999, im go California, USA to do two transformation surgeries wey Nigeria FCT ministers sponsor. As im still dey US, Nigeria Flying Eagles invite am to come play for U20 World Cup for 2005. James bin qualify to follow di team play di World Cup except for im age. "As dem check my international passport dem see say na just one year i take pass di age wey dem need," im tok. E play for three oda men teams like NEPA football club plus odas witout wahala. But by di time im move to im fourth club, na dia discrimination start. James say, if to say im just bin wan continue to dey make moni for women football wey dem don sabi am, im for choose to be woman even though result say im na only 30% woman. E believe say di reason why im career for football cut short na becos Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) wey be Nigeria Football Association (NFA) during di time wey im face discrimination, just abandon am, dem no give am support. For di reply wey NFF write give BBC, di federation director of communications Ademola Olajire, say wetin happen to James Johnson dey unfortunate, and im believe say di pipo wey dey in charge during dat time for do more to assist am. Who be intersex? Intersex na pesin wey come dis world wit two sex organs, man and woman. Many intersex pipo dey confused about who dem be and which gender dem belong weda man or woman. E no possible to categorise dis group of pipo as man or woman as dem no be any of di two. Intersex dey for Nigeria as dem dey for all di kontris for world. But kontris wey officially recognise say dis group of pipo dey exist dey refer to dem as non-binary or odas. Meaning say dem no be man and dem no be woman. Dem get many different varieties of intersex and most times e dey hard to know from small pikin weda dem be man or woman until di pesin grow. Sabi pipo say one out of evri 2,000 pipo wey come world, one na intersex. But e hard to know exactly how many dey for Nigeria as many of dem dey hide who dem be, and parents wey get moni dey sharply go do surgery for dia pikin wen im small. James Johnson and Mystique Evolving no dey hide say dem be intersex. Dem dey hope say, as dem tell dia story, e go make pipo begin discuss di wahala wey dey affect intersex pipo and help fight discrimination.