Tony Briffa

2021-06-05T23:12:58Z

2A02:A312:C742:AF80:ED68:7663:1AFA:9D59:

{{Infobox person
| picture=
| caption=
| date_birth=1971
| place_birth=Altona, Victoria, Australia
| nationality=Australian
| pronouns=she/her, any
| gender="I am both male and female"
| occupation=Politician, activist
| known_for=First openly intersex mayor elected in the world
}}
'''Tony Briffa''' is an Australian politician and [[intersex]] activist who feels she is nonbinary due to her intersex condition, Partial Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome. She obtained a [[Gender recognition|birth certificate]] with a blank sex designation. This caused legal difficulty in getting married, since Australian law specified marriage as between a man and a woman. In 2013 she and Manja Sommeling traveled to New Zealand and were married there.<ref name="Calleja">{{Cite web |title='Healthy hermaphrodite' is both man and woman |last=Calleja |first=Claudia |work=Times of Malta |date=16 February 2015 |access-date=17 April 2020 |url= https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/-Healthy-hermaphrodite-is-both-man-and-woman.556257}}</ref>

As of April 2020, Tony's official website uses "she/her" pronouns<ref>[http://briffa.org/tony_briffa Who is Tony Briffa?]</ref>, although she is okay with any pronouns.<ref name="Experience">{{Cite web |title=My experience as the world’s first openly intersex Mayor |author=Tony Briffa |work=briffa.org |date=10 September 2017 |access-date=17 April 2020 |url= http://briffa.org/tony-briffa-my-experience-as-the-worlds-first-openly-intersex-mayor}}</ref>

In her youth, Tony was made to take feminizing [[hormone therapy]] for years, but never identified as female.<ref name="Calleja" />

Tony does identify as [[queer]]<ref>{{cite tweet|user=tonybriffa|number=1217938647107813381|date=16 January 2020|title=I'm looking forward to being on @JOY949 on #queerislanddiscs this Saturday. I'm intersex and queer, but why am I vacuuming the red carpet? @lgbtihealth @ThorneHarbour @queerspace_ds @VGLRL @comish_ro_allen @intersexaus}}</ref> but does not consider herself [[trans]].<ref name="Experience" />

==Quotes==
"My natural female and male biology also reflected how I felt as a person. I'm more than just a woman or a man - I'm both."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://briffa.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/10483271_703814519672878_8146244864219099558_o.jpg|title="I'm proud to be intersex"}}</ref>

"If people feel female that is great, and if they feel male that is great, but there are also people like me: I just accept the way nature made me. I am happy for my birth certificate to say that I am both male and female. One day, hopefully, we will have that as well."<ref>[https://ihra.org.au/25037/cross-party-speeches-intersex-health-australian-senate/ Cross-party speeches on intersex health in the Australian Senate], Morgan Carpenter, 25 March 2014</ref>

"Sex is about biology and gender is about identity. Like most people, my gender is consistent with my sex."<ref>[https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/tony-briffa-worlds-first-openly-intersex-person-elected-public-office/ This is the world’s first openly intersex person elected into public office], 26 October 2017</ref>

"I am part Antoinette and I'm part Tony."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFtXJOIxtPQ NICHE IDAHO Campaign: "I", Tony (YourStory)] August 3 2013</ref>

"Being referred to as 'Mr Mayor' was not easy. Inside I cringed every time I heard it because I felt the 'Mr' denied my full self. 'Madam Mayor' similarly would have felt strange because that too denied part of me. It’s funny how words have these affects. For the most part I just went on with the job and ignored the male/female salutations, just as I tried to ignore being constantly labelled the world's first intersex mayor."<ref name="Experience" />

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Australia]]
[[Category:Nonbinary people]]
[[Category:Activists]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Briffa, Tony}}

Nonbinary Wiki - User contributions [en]

Tony Briffa