Should we condemn the practice of female circumcision?

Question

Queen Rania of Jordan asked what we are doing to empower women.
http://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070301145921AA9ayoi&r=w#TMR7W2a4U2QRiJfow1RwqayhXDPHRNb2BQ7pvxsIzGYL7gnucGhB

My answer, condemning female circumcision, has both positive AND negative feedback. So I thought it should be more openly debated.

What do you think?

Answer 1

Circumcision of females is no more barbaric than the routine circumcision of baby boys but for some reason, for baby boys, mutilating their genitals is acceptable.

Both practices must stop.

Answer 2

"Condemn" is the wrong word. Female "circumcision" is a problem brought about because of cultural traditions and ignorance. The only way to stop it is to show those who participate in such practices of the harm they are causing upon their daughters. They must be taught the biological meaning of what they're doing. My suspicion is that it was thought up by men who were lousy in the sack and a "disappointment" to their young brides.

Just to back up the others clarifying, there IS a difference between male circumcision and female mutilation. If you look into biology, it becomes clear very quickly. It's not an overstatement to say that cutting off the clitoris is like cutting off a penis. Circumcision removes only the "foreskin", which in females is the very small piece of skin covering the clitoris..

Answer 3

I think you may have received negative feedback because Queen Rania asked what steps you are taking to empower women, and you simply mentioned a practice you hate, but not what you're **doing** about it. I condemn female circumcision too. There, I said it. Doesn't make me a better person though, because I'm just flapping my mouth without taking any action. So if you feel that strongly about something, get to it!

Answer 4

Growing up in our culture, my first thought would be to agree with you. Having studied cultural anthropology recently however, I feel that there is more to the issue than simply what is right and what is wrong.

It can be very difficult to understand how a different culture views things, and some things that we do might seem atrocious to them, just as we feel that way about some things that they do. If you approach the issue ethnocentrically, you're always going to find something wrong with another person's culture. It becomes an "Us vs. Them"

Now matter how loudly we might scream about it, they are not going to stop doing it just because we tell them that it is wrong. What reason do they have to believe what we have to say?

A common misconception is that it is the Men who want this procedure done, and that the women are powerless to stop it. In actuality, it is usually the girl's mother who demands it, for the sake of their traditions.

Perhaps the most we can do for these women is try to ensure that if the procedure is going to be done, all of the proper health precautions are taken and everything is done properly and safely by someone who has medical training. Another thing that we could do for them is try to share with their culture the true nature of the organ that they are removing, and what it can add to a relationship. If they know nothing about it, how are they going to understand any benefit that they might get from not removing it?

Answer 5

The question of morality does not lie within the act of female circumcision. The question of morality lies within the choice, and whose choice it is, of female circumcision. You have no right to condemn a culture based on their practices. Obviously, you're judgments are based upon your perception of the world as well as your perceived morality - both of which are limited - and to condemn based upon this is fairly closed minded.

From what I know about female circumcision is that it is sometimes done without consent but other times it is also considered a right of passage for some women in some cultures. (I'm sorry, I don't have any sources to back it up at the moment - I have to get to work...but feel free to rebut).

So, do I condemn female circumcision? No. Do I condemn female circumcision being forced upon women? Absolutely.

You can't condemn a practice, but you can condemn a practice being forced upon people.

Answer 6

Well my reply is basically for Paul Y. This issue has nothing to do with being American it has to do with being human. It is sad how many Americans only see the world as American or not American. I know first hand how female circumcision can be devastating not only women but also for men and the family. Before, satisfying men was the main focus. However today many men question their own manliness when they can't satisfy their wive or girlfriends. With globalisation, people intermarry so that issue becomes global. It is not anymore "their problem" and "our problem". It has become everybody's problem. On the same token, the circumcised girl may be infected, contracts STDs or HIV and grows to become a woman without showing symptoms. Do you understand the extent of the global health issues?? It is scary!!!!

Answer 7

Clitorectomy, or "female circumcision" is NOT similar to male circumcision. It is, in fact, the removal of the entire sensory organ, more like removing the male's entire penis. The purpose is to prevent a woman from being orgasmic, which will supposedly keep her from becoming an adulteress. Of COURSE it ought to be condemned! (and so should forced marriage, pedophilia, forced burka wearing, and the whole despicable nine yards) The cultural/religious indoctrination, however, is so great that women in some parts of the world would adamantly support their own mutilation with self-righteous fervor. Thank G-d I was born in the USA...

Answer 8

The answers posted to this question show a significant lack of knowledge regarding the practice of female genital cutting (female circumcision is a popular but inaccurate term). Female genital cutting practices vary greatly, from relatively benign to grossly disfiguring and life threatening. While I do oppose most forms of the practice, I also oppose emotional knee-jerk answers to such touchy questions as these. Please do yourselves (and the rest of us) a favor by researching the topic before commenting on it. The same applies to male circumcision, by the way.

As for the context of this issue as an answer to Queen Rania's question of ways to empower women, I think condemnation of FGC is quite a niche cause. The practice is limited to relatively few parts of the world (parts of central Africa and the middle east), whereas women the world over face all kinds of challenges. A more globally relevant answer might be suffrage for women, educational rights, equal pay, etc.

Answer 9

Male circumcision when performed correctly rarely results in ongoing health problems. Female "circumcision" on the other hand almost always leads to a lifetime of pain for the victim. The effects of female genital mutilation include pain while urinating (which can often take 15 minutes to do!), pain during intercourse and childbirth and as a result an inability to find any enjoyment in life. Husbands are often ignorant to the details of this practice and horrified when they realise what terrible suffering it causes their wives. Both men and women are to blame for this. Men for demanding that their wives be "pure" and women for continuing to carry out this practice out of fear - a girl considered unpure will have difficulty finding a husband and being accepted by her community. This is a deep-rooted cultural issue that cannot be easily stopped by an interfering western country. The only solution is education by respected, sensitive medical professionals. It is most important to educate the men as in these places it is still the man who has the ultimate power and therefore the power to stop it.
PS. This barbaric custom also affects girls and women in countries all over the world even America. Even if it is banned in one country some parents take their daughter overseas to have it done.

Answer 10

This practice of mutilation is barbaric and should be stopped. This is to take the pleasure of sex away from the woman so that she can be even more controlled by men. We were meant to have clitorises! I don't think i want to know who gave you the negative feedback. Some might argue the "cultural" card, but this is a form of mutilation and controll that must end now!

I have to admit that until i read some of these answers that i hadn't thought about male circumcision. I'm personally against that too. When my son was born, there was never a question in my mind whether he would be circumcised or not. There was no way that i would do that to him. I remember that one day while we were still in the hospital - i'd had a c-section - I was in a room that had a rocking chair in it, just off of the main nursery. I looked up and up on the wall was the plastic "form" that they strapped baby boys in to mutilate them. I was trying to breastfeed him and just couldn't it upset me so much. We moved back to our room. In fact, here in Canada, our medical system is as such now, that if you want your baby boy to be circumcised, you have to pay for it. It is not covered under our "free" medical system.

Mutilation of anyone, who isn't making the decision for themselves, is just wrong. Cultural practices or not.

Answer 11

You didn't get so many thumbs up and thumbs down because its a big deal but rather because usually the first answers are judged the most. If you hadn't noticed, the answers in the second page don't have so many thumbs ups and/or downs. I honestly don't know if we should condemn the circumsion of women, Im not sure what it is or what happens when its done to someone. It sounds like a bad thing though, so it should be condemned