Female Genital Mutilation

By Rob Mason

Female Genital Mutilation is a ritual that is practiced throughout the world, including the United States, which professionals deem unnecessary and dangerous. It involves the removal of healthily functioning parts of a female's genitalia, and is said to prevent women from being overly sexual and cheating on their husbands.

Dr. Erin Mitchell, an adjunct lecturer in the Women’s Studies department at Plattsburgh State, said FGM is often compared to male circumcision, but while both are unneces-sary, FGM is much more drastic and damaging. “A more appropriate analogy would be between FGM and a penisdectomy,” Mitchell said, “which is the total removal of the penis.”

According to Amnesty International’s website, www.amnesty.org, FGM is usually per-formed in very unsanitary conditions by a midwife, not a doctor, and they often use dirty razor blades, scissors, knives, or pieces of glass. These instruments are often used on many girls in succession, so diseases such as HIV and other infections are transmitted from one girl to the next.

“Anesthesia is rarely used when FGM’s are being performed,” Mitchell said. “Imagine having an operation like that while being fully cognizant and able to feel everything that is happening to your body. It’s horrific to even think about”

FGM is performed on girls of various ages said Dr. James Armstrong, who teaches a course titled Sexuality and Culture at PSUC. Some are only a few days old, while others are much older. Many girls also die as a result of infections which set in after the un-sanitary procedure he said.

Beyond these consequences, the long-term complications include genital malformation and recurrent urinary infection. “There are also a wide range of obstetric problems which are found in women who have undergone FGM as well,” Armstrong said. “Because damage usually occurs to birth canal, many babies run the risk of having their heads crushed if the mother isn't further ‘opened’ to allow the baby to pass through.”

There are many reasons given for the continuing practice of FGM in various cultures throughout the world, including family honor, insurance of virginity and faithfulness to a husband. Due to the fact that it is a centuries old custom for many of these people, they are unwilling to put an end to the practice even though those who do not share the cus-tom consider it to be barbaric, and numerous worldwide efforts have been undertaken to ban the practice of FGM. It is now illegal in several countries now, but certain cultures still continue to perform FGM of their young girls despite it being against the law.

For more information on the practice of Female Genital Mutilation, please visit http://www.amnesty.org/.

The Three Main Types of Female Genital Mutilation

-Sunna Circumcision: removal of the prepuce and/or tip of the clitoris.

-Clitoridectomy: removal of the clitoris and adjacent labia.

-Infibulation: removal of clitoris and majora and minora labia, followed by the securing of the scraped sides of the vulva across the vagina with thorns or catgut. A small piece of wood is used to create an opening to allow the passage of urine and menstrual blood.