ISNA stated that newborn intersex genitals should not be operated on, unless they need to be in order to maintain the child's physical health. It was (and to some extent still is) a common belief that a child's genitals needed to conform to average genitals of a male or female, so in the first 24 hours after birth, doctors could perform "extensive reconstructive surgery in order to avoid damage to the child's mental health" (56). On the other hand, the ISNA claimed there is "no evidence that children who grow up with intersex genitals are worse off psychologically than those who are altered" and that there is "no evidence that early surgery relieves parental distress". They believed it to be inhumane to choose someone's genitals for them. This being said, the ISNA did not condemn surgery in general, and believed that intersex people should be allowed to opt for genital reconstruction, if they want to, when they can fully consent to the operations themselves.
ISNA stated that newborn intersex genitals should not be operated on, unless they need to be in order to maintain the child's physical health It was (and to some extent still is) a common belief that a child's genitals needed to conform to average genitals of a male or female, so in the first 24 hours after birth, doctors could perform "extensive reconstructive surgery in order to avoid damage to the child's mental health" (56). On the other hand, the ISNA claimed there is "no evidence that children who grow up with intersex genitals are worse off psychologically than those who are altered" and that there is "no evidence that early surgery relieves parental distress". They believed it to be inhumane to choose someone's genitals for them. This being said, the ISNA did not condemn surgery in general, and believed that intersex people should be allowed to opt for genital reconstruction, if they want to, when they can fully consent to the operations themselves.