So as a greater percentage of the population identifies as non-cisgender and goes through gender/sex reassignment surgery, the question of if only having 2 legal genders/sexes is sufficient.
Some countries such as Germany, Australia and New Zealand have a third legal sex, X for indeterminant. The arguably better represents intersex people and non-gender binary people.
However, there are some issues with both Canada's traditional system and the system in Australia. For example, the healthcare needs of transmen may be different from the healthcare needs of men, yet if both groups are legally classified as M then this may result in worse healthcare quality for transpeople.
Ultimately, I think that the main problem is that usage of the words gender and sex is often interchangeable and as a result things become unnecessarily confusing since sometimes gender and sex mean the same thing and other times they do not. The distinction between Genetic sex, phenotypical sex and gender identity are rarely made. Whether or not you agree with transpeople, surely everyone would benefit from having more clearly defined categories.
I suggest that Canada and other countries adopt the following gender-sex classification system:
- People are categorized based upon 3 traits: genetic sex, phenotypical sex and gender identity.
- There are 3 legal options for genetic sex: female (F), male (M) and intersex (X).
- Genetic sex is based on your DNA. Most people with two X chromosomes will be F, most people with an X and a Y will be M. In some rare cases such as Kleinfelter's syndrome, people will be classified as intersex.
- There are 3 legal options for phenotypical sex: female (F), male (M) and other (X).
- Individuals that externally appear female will be F, individuals that externally appear male will be M, and individuals that are ambiguous will be X. People can change their phenotypical sex, but only after surgery or medical intervention such as a vaginoplasty.
- There are 3 legal options for gender identity: female (F), male (M) and other (X).
- Gender identity will depend on what the individual identifies as and an individual can change their legal gender identity simply by filling out a form and submitting it to the government.
Government issued documents will indicate someone's gender-sex classification with 3 letters corresponding to the person's genetic sex, phenotypical sex and gender identity. Here are some examples:
- A person who is genetically female, phenotypically appears to be female and identifies as a female gendered person will be FFF.
- A post-op transwoman who identifies as a female gendered person will be MFF.
- A pre-op transman who identifies as a male gendered person will be FFM.
- An intersex person who phenotypically appears to be female and identifies as a male gendered person will be XFM.
- A genetic male who phenotypically appears to be male and identifies as agender will be MMX.
- A genetic female who has undergone androgynous surgery and identifies as gender-fluid will be FXX.
Thoughts?