Did you know that recent studies have shown that up to 90% of Egyptian women have been "circumsized"? That's a nice way of saying their clitoris has been removed. As the proud owner of one, the mere thought of having it cut off of me with a piece of glass, or even in a nice clean doctor's office with sterile equipment, fills me with gut-churning dread. What gets me even more freaked out is that some women in cultures that practice this mutilation (and yes, it is a mutilation) totally buy into it. From a BBC comment thread:
I come form a community that glorifies and carries out this archaic and barbaric practice. What annoys me as a fighter of FGM is the way our girls in my community glorify this culture, saying that if you do not undertake it you are not a woman enough. This thing should be banned for it is a major cause of many deaths among our young ladies.
So. They cut off your clitoris. And make you believe it's necessary. I think I'm going to be sick.
Egypt has just imposed a total ban on the practice of FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) after public outcry after a 12 year-old girl died during the procedure. The First Lady of Egypt, Susanne Mubarak, has spoken out strongly against FGM, and the top religious authorities there have supported the ban, saying that the the practice has no basis in the Koran or the Bible.
Article from BBC NEWS
About FGM - really, all you need to know is they slice off your clitoris. If you're lucky it's done by a doctor with anesthesia. According to Wikipedia,there are three main types of FGM. Type I is clitoridectomy:
"Clitoridectomy involves the removal or splitting of the clitoral hood, termed "hoodectomy" (or "clitorodotomy"), with or without excision of the clitoris"
Just when you thought you may be able to keep your lunch down, here's type II:
Excision refers to clitoridectomy (removal of the prepuce and the clitoris) plus the partial or total removal of the labia minora, the inner lips of the vulva, see Diagram 1C. Type II circumcision is a more extensive form of FGC compared to Type I and due to the sewing together of the leftover labia minora epidermis, which contains sweat glands, a buildup of sweat and urine in the closed off space beneath this closure can lead to local or urinary infection, septicemia, hemorrhaging and cyst formation.[10] This type of FGC is also called khafd, meaning reduction in Arabic.
Oh. My. God. Yes, I can sure see how that would make me more pure and trustworthy as a wife. But wait, as if you weren't queasy enough, here's the real deal - type III:
Type III is the most severe form of FGC and is called infibulation, or pharaonic circumcision (referring to the Pharaohs who were thought to practice this form). Infibulation involves extensive tissue removal of the external genitalia, including all of the labia minora and the inside of the labia majora, leaving a raw open wound. The labia majora are then held together using thorns or stitching and the girl's legs are tied together for two - six weeks, to prevent her from moving and allow the healing of the two sides of the vulva. Nothing remains of the normal anatomy of the genitalia, except for a wall of flesh from the pubis down to the anus, with the exception of a pencil-size opening at the inferior portion of the vulva to allow urine and menstrual blood to pass through, see Diagram 1D. This type of FGC is often carried out by an elderly matron or midwife of the village on girls between the ages of two and six, without anaesthetic and under unhygienic conditions.
I suggest that while I'm finding something to throw up into that you read the rest of the Wiki entry.
There is no excuse, no good reason, no justification that can convince me that FGM is a good idea. Oh, but I will say that it damn well would keep me chaste. And that's what it really boils down to - big, strong, brave men afraid of women's sexuality, gone so far as to introduce and perpetuate cultural practices that mutilate women so they can experience no sexual pleasure, EVER. God forbid she should like to fuck. She may just leave you to find someone who can get the job done properly, eh? Better carve her up. Better still, convince the other women that it's necessary and have them do it for you, letting you off the hook. "See? The women are the ones doing it!". I often wonder if the women who perpetuate this practice are bitterly making their daughters and little sisters 'pay their dues' like they had to.
So thank you, Egypt, from my crotch and the bottom of my heart. You've done a great thing for human rights, in my opinion. If you actually enforce this ban, all the better. Maybe the practice will become completely obsolete, a distant memory. Something that future generations find so shocking that they won't believe it ever could have happened. We can only hope.
Crossposted (as Prole) at brand-spankin' new A Creative Revolution