Female circumcision....please explain what on earth this is and how it works?

Question

I was in sociology class and the subject of female being circumcised came up

Apparently, the sew up the female private area so that she could not lose her virginity until she is married - BUT how on earth does she manage to pee?!!!

Answer 1

female circumsision can also mean removal of the clitoris. she can pee because they are only sewing up the vaginal opening, not the pee hole. its done so that the girls will never orgasm, very cruel

Answer 2

It is actually removal of the clitoris, still practiced in some African cultures. Circumcision is much too nice a word for it. It is a male-dominant way of ensuring that a female will never, ever enjoy sex. In the villages where it is done, there is a strong cultural push that for a female to be worthy of marriage, she must not have a clitoris. I would fall back on the old "If God had wanted..." argument.
Female circumcision does not involve sewing the vaginal labia together. They wouldn't "heal" into a closed position. And men who would do this wouldn't care whether a woman could pee or not.
I'm against female circumcision and I don't know anyone who is for it. I hope this clears up any confusion you may have had.

Answer 3

Dukalink is perfectly right. Some forms of excision imply the sewing up of labia.

I have to disagree with surfin(something). It can't be compared to circumcision. It might be painful for men when it happens (and it can be dangerous indeed if it is not done in a clean environment), but men can still have pleasure, and not just by penetration. And the pain stop quite rapidly.

To go back to excision... I saw a documentary about that once. They were showing what a clitoris looked like after the excision. Well, it's like a big, thick scar. Women suffer all the time, even 40-50 years after the operation. And they can die when giving birth, because the scar breaks open (imagine the pain!;...). It is a form of torture, I think. The worst is that it is often women who perform it, because of traditions.

I know there is ONE doctor (maybe there are more, now, but I doubt it, because you can't really make money out of it) who repairs the clitoris. He was appalled at what he saw when he learnt about it. Now, women can have a "normal" clitoris and normal labias (for those who have been even less lucky), and not be in constant pain.

They are trying to go to African villages to explain people the consequences of what they do, and to explain that it is not a "normal" practice. But it's difficult to change people's mind because it is part of their traditions.

Answer 4

There are various versions, all gruesome enough to make even men cross their legs to think about. They cut off the clitoris and/or the inner lips and/or sew up the vulva until there is only enough to pee through." Works" may not be the right verb. It just gives a tribal identity - all the women in the community have shared the same mutilation. Another reason to be glad I am a Western European male, not an East African female.

Answer 5

Female genital cutting (FGC) refers to amputation of any part of the female genitalia for cultural rather than medical reasons. The term almost always excludes gender reassignment surgery, which is usually done for personal rather than cultural reasons, or genital modification of intersexuals .

Most Human rights organizations in the West, Africa, and Asia consider female genital cutting rituals a violation of women's human rights. Among these groups and governments, they are regarded as unacceptable and illegal forms of body modification and mutilation of those believed to be too young or otherwise unable to give informed consent.

Although occasionally practiced by some doctors in the United States until 1958, in recent years it has been common only in parts of Africa and by minority groups in some countries of the Middle East. Less frequently, it occurs among some immigrant communities in parts of Asia and the Pacific, North and Latin America, and Europe.

Opponents of these practices use the term female genital mutilation (FGM). The term female circumcision is also in common usage, though advocates of male circumcision argue that this results in unwanted associations between the two practices, while genital integrity advocates might refer to all child genital cutting as mutilation. The term encompasses a wide variety of practices some of which are frequently equated directly with male circumcision, others which involve a far greater level of cutting or mutilation and others yet which involve no real cutting or mutilation.

The pee comes through another hole and it will be left open in the above procedure

Answer 6

You are MISTAKEN.

Female circumcision describes one and only one thing: the cutting or removal of the clitoral hood (prepuce) with no intent to harm the clitoris or impair sexual function. It is much LESS damaging than male circumcision, which removes half the penile skin, over half of the sensual nerve endings, and the frenulum (which is the male neurological homologue to the clitoris).

The sewing up you are refering to is Type III Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). While the genitals are mutilated and the vulva are sewn up, there is a deliberate effort to leave a small opening for urination and menstrual flow. It often does not work as intended.

FGM is barbaric and is illegal in most of the world. Many Somali tribes are learning to substitute a non-mutilating coming-of-age ceremony (Gudnin Usub) for FGM. (1)

Involuntary female circumcision is a form of FGM, but actual cosmetic female circumcision does have some sane proponants who elect it for themselves.

-Ron

Answer 7

There are different forms of female circumcision. A form of female circumcision called excision involves the removal of all or part of the clitoris, and in some cases other external genitalia. In the most extreme form of circumcision, called infibulation, the clitoris and both labia are removed and the two sides of the vulva are sewn together- except for a small opening for urine and menstrual blood to go through (Heise 1993).

Another, less severe form of circumcision involves small incisions in the skin covering the clitoris. Eighty- five percent of worldwide female circumcision involves this less severe form or excision, and fifteen percent includes infibulation. Infibulation and excision cause both immediate and long term health risks. The immediate consequential health risks of infibulation or excision are shock, hemorrhaging, infection, pain, urinary retention, and damage to the urethra (Heise 1993).

Answer 8

It is a loosely woven stitch that allows for the act of urination but does not allow for penetration. There is also the act of sodomy where by young girls have the surgical removal of the clitoris resulting in the absence of pleasure derived from the act of sexual intercourse. There are also Hyman replacement surgical procedures. This is when a piece of thin membrane is stitched into the vaginal wall with a blood sack attached to the back of the membrane resulting in the act of penetration breaking the new Hyman and causing the blood sack to break creating the illusion of ones first time. The societal expectations in the western world are not what deem such practices advisable but in other nations/countries it is a function of the societal norm. I hope that answers your question.

Answer 9

OK here goes bare with me...
Female circumcision occurs in two ways, firstly they remove the clitoris as it is deemed inappropriate for a women to have orgasms during sex, and only deemed appropriate for men to enjoy the experience, then the entrance to the vagina is sewn up except for a small slit which is left open for menstruation to still occur. This is to ensure faith-fullness and to ensure a women is still a virgin on her wedding night
You can still pee because this comes from the urinary tract which is situated in the clitoris, even if it is removed the opening is still there
It is illegal in every country but is still practised in countries all over the world.

Answer 10

They do not sew up the vagina in female circumcision. They circumcise the clitorus, which is not only painful, it makes it nearly impossible for a woman to have an orgasm. Barbaric cultures use this to keep women under control, and prevent them from having pleasure. The same can be said about the practice on men, too.

Answer 11

In most areas where circumcision was practiced, there also occurred “female circumcision,” although there were no age-sets for women. In the female rite, the clitoris was cut out (clitoridectomy), and often the labia minora were also removed.