US Paeds *compromise* on female genital mutilation

[tabouleh]

OMG

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), which essentially promotes female genital mutilation (FGM) and advocates for "federal and state laws [to] enable pediatricians to reach out to families by offering a 'ritual nick'," such as pricking or minor incisions of girls' clitorises.

Link is here.

A friend linked the above on their FB.

It is bloody shocking. From what I've seen the US obs/gyns and paeds are deeply misogynist .

Of course the rates of cicumcision in the US are far higher than in the UK so this decision may be influenced by religion.

Does anyone know for certain what the UK's medical college's stance on this is. Would hope that it would be 100% against any "compromise".

Just had a bit of a google and there is a UK charity called Forward which campaigns to stamp out FGM.

In their information pack I see that in 2000 an All Party Paliamentary group made various recommendation of which one was:

"under no circumstances should FGM be medicalised as it makes an unecessary and harmful practice acceptable" (from p19 of the pdf report)

Yeah - thank goodness this is the UK view.

I would be interested to know how many of the recommendations of this report have been actioned. (Haven't got time to look at at the moment.)

"The American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists and
the College of Physicians and Surgeons
of Ontario, Canada, also opposed
FGC and advised their members
not to perform these procedures."

Why is it down to Drs to be advised? It should be made illegal.

So illegal that the pragmatic argument (better in sterile conditions than rusty bread knife) is blown out of the water: the law should be if you allow anyone at your baby with a blade, you will end up in jail. If you leave the country in order to have it carried out on a child who is a U.S citizen, you will end up in jail. If you are not a U.S citizen but leave the country to have this done to a child, you will be permanently excluded from the U.S.

However barring the token nicking version would doubtless look hypocritical to Americans with orgins in Somalia, or whatever, given the widespread enthusiasm for chopping boys' genitals.

I don't think anyone in the US (apart apparently from the AAP and the parents of some girls ) would do anything but squirm in disgust at the idea of FGC. The male circumcision thing is very accepted, and is a completely different battle in the US. But the vast majority of Americans would be sickened at the thought of FGC. Somali immigrants might howl irony, but they'd get the flag waved in their faces. Americans don't really get irony, but they do not think FGC is a good thing.

Doctors are treated like demi gods in the US. They don't really answer to anyone or get struck off like they would in the UK. They don't have NICE guidelines. They have a lot of autonomy. ACOG and AAP are like unions, protecting the interest of their members rather than patients.

I'm ironic as it gets, math.

I agree that a straight up "this is illegal here, we don't do it and if you do you will be prosecuted and/or deported" would be the best policy.

< CheerfulYank>

I think this is crazy and I'm usually all for "let people have their cultures" but this is a disgusting practice that is done for no other reason than a mysonginistic one.

I cannot believe the AAP would agree to this. They are seriously deluded if they think somebody who happily has their child mutilated in this manner, having gone through it themselves, knowing it would cause so much pain and unhappiness in their child's future life, would agree to this highly watered down procedure. The problem is it doesn't do what they want it to do.

The problem with comparing it to male circumcision is that it diminishes the effect of such an act. You might not like male circumcision but in no way (or at least very rarely) does it cause the same amount of pain or dysfunction. And the reasons for doing it are very very different. A woman I know who had it done said at 4 years old she was told she had to hve it done because it would make her a good girl for her future husband. I am sorry if this is a bit graphic but I feel it is important to make my point. She had her clitoris cut off. Part of the labia cut and she was sewn up (in order for her husband to unsew her on their wedding night). By the time she had got through telling me I was so traumatised and in tears that I dare not ask any questions but if you think about things such as menstruation and using the toilet it absolutely must be realised that FGM is much more abhorrent than male circumcision.

Can I just add that it is not just Somali's who practice FGM.

"Interesting to see that the Scandinavia countries are taking a lead on prosecuting FGM and screening for it within immigrant communities"
I didn't know that, how are they screening for it though. Have they implemented anything like this in the UK?

apologies for spelling mistakes but was tapping away furiously, words fail me for how much I hate this practice.

tabouleh just wanted to add that circ of boys was the "norm" when my brothers were born (20+ years ago), not for religious or cultural reasons, but my parents chose not to. DH is "cut" because, according to his mother, they didn't want him to feel "weird" in front of his father/brothers/other men (how it sickens me to write that). My mom believes that if his junk ain't broke, don't try to fix it! Plus, my family was very poor, so it was considered an uneccesary expense.

From speaking to my mother and other women, circumsizing boys has been dropping off for a lot longer than they have been campaigning against it, but because there is a lag in normalising the um public uncut penis [penii?] (ie, mother decides not to do it, boy has approx 13 years before teen angst about such things set in. if he is the leading edge he will be unusual, but as more boys are left au natural, more boys will be left intact because it will become more normal and so numbers snowball)

I think the rates are dropping off now because in the 80's they were starting to find it wasn't actually cleaner (always the excuse I have heard), so women were choosing to "wait and see" and then the boys never ended up needing it. Those boys are now having their own babies and the idea seems ridiculous since it never harmed them to have a foreskin.

They routinely remove wisdom teeth in the US too. Many things that MIGHT eventually in some people be a problem get taken out as a matter of course... just in case.

I don't know anyone my age who is circumsizing their boys.

I think, AFIK, that FGM is seen as a diferent thing entirely since the understanding of it (that I have seen) is that women who are subjected to it cannot experience sexual arousal. Whether this is correct or not, I know people who consider FGM a MUCH biger deal, and not really analagous to male circ, because boys will have reduced sensitivity, but can still be perfectly randy little buggers so has a greater effect on girls. [note: I don't think they are RIGHT, I'm just saying I know this is how some people compare the two and the justification they use]

And pulled from your link:
"The circumcision rate is already estimated to be as low as 30% in the Western United States"

I am from california, as is DH. Almost all my family and friends are in the Western US. Our rates may be much lower than the national average due to our contrary natures willingness to break with tradition. DH is 7 years older than my oldest brother. It may well be that a slight switch in thinking took place in that time. Also, DH's mother delivered in a hospital w/OBGYN, my mother delivered in a hospital w/a midwife (special request in those days apparently).

"The mutilation of children's genitals is sick and wrong and should be stopped and prosecuted if it happens."
Completely agree - that should be the bottom line really.

CagedBird, that is awful. I'm shocked and sickened by that - the physical act and then the symbolism of her husband un-sewing her

It's about fear of promiscuity, and women as property, and virginity as a prize to be owned by the husband. African and Middle-Eastern cultures believe that a woman will be promiscuous if she isn't circumcised. Although it's illegal in the UK there are a lot of backstreet places which do it, especially in London.

It's truly vile. A lot of women do try and protect their daughters from it, but ultimately, the husband usually has the say.

Just to update you all see this update thread they have U-turned and retired their policy .

Lets hope not too much damage was done and that the profile raising of FGM helps reduce this vile practice.