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‘Interphobia’: Blinken Celebrates International Day Against Phobias Nobody’s Heard Of

Antony Blinken
Antony Blinken / Getty Images
May 18, 2023

Secretary of State Antony Blinken celebrated a holiday on Wednesday against obscure phobias.

"On International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia we call for an end to harmful conversion therapy practices, including those that attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics," Blinken tweeted on Wednesday, adding the holiday’s alphabetism "#IDAHOBIT."

Biphobia means the dislike of people who identify as bisexual. Interphobia describes prejudice against those are intersex, which means bodies that "fall outside the strict male/female binary," according to Planned Parenthood.

The United Nations also marked the holiday, though it excluded mention of "interphobia" in its statement.

Blinken's tweet is the latest example of the State Department focusing on left-wing identity politics. Two months ago, President Joe Biden rolled out a budget proposal that included a $3 billion grant for the State Department to advance "gender equity and equality around the world."

One $400 million program at the State Department is aimed at fostering "inclusive and responsible technology development … [for] the ability of women, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex community, and other marginalized groups to safely access digital technologies" in Africa.