Read complete books and articles on: Female Genital Mutilation

Circumcision - sûrˌkəmsĭzhˈən, operation to remove the foreskin covering the glans of the penis. It dates back to prehistoric times and was widespread throughout the Middle East as a religious rite before it was introduced among the Hebrews, presumably by Abraham. It is performed by Jews on the eighth day after the birth of the male child, unless postponed for reasons of health. It is also practiced among Muslims and by other peoples in many parts of the world. Explanations of the origin of circumcision are entirely conjectural. It is related to rites of initiation. Among Jews it is considered to involve membership in the community and to be a sign of the covenant between God and humans. The decision that Christians need not practice circumcision is recorded in Acts 15; there was never, however, a prohibition of circumcision, and it is practiced by Coptic Christians. Despite some controversy, it also has been widely practiced in modern times, especially in the United States, as a sanitary measure believed to give some preventive advantage against penile cancer and sexually transmitted diseases. Since 1971, when the American Academy of Pediatrics stopped recommending routine infant circumcision, the number of circumcised infants in the United States has slowly declined, although it is still above 60%.

Female circumcision, in the form of excision of the labia minora and clitoris (clitoridectomy) aimed at destroying sexual sensation, is known in Islam (although it is a cultural, not a religious practice) and in certain societies of Africa, South America, and elsewhere. Also called female genital mutilation, it is a controversial practice, but deeply rooted in local custom; there are movements toward prohibition in some countries. In the United States it is illegally practiced among some immigrant populations. In some instances women have sought asylum in the United States or other Western nations to prevent forced operations on themselves or their daughters.

See study by D. L. Gollaher (2000).

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16 of the Best Books and Articles on: Female Genital Mutilation

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

Female "Circumcision" in Africa: Culture, Controversy, and Change » Read Now
by Ylva Hernlund, Bettina Shell-Duncan. 349 pgs.

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The authors critically examine current debates & initiatives on female "circumcision," & explore the role that scholars can & should--or should not--play in approaching the issue.
2.

Circumcision: A History of the World's Most Controversial Surgery (Chap. Eight "Female Circumcision") » Read Now
by David L. Gollaher. 272 pgs.

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How has a medical practice that carries substantial risk to the patient and offers very little actual benefit become so widely accepted by parents and fiercely advocated by the medical community? Historian of medicine David Gollaher tells the strange history of medicine's oldest enigma and most...
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How has a medical practice that carries substantial risk to the patient and offers very little actual benefit become so widely accepted by parents and fiercely advocated by the medical community? Historian of medicine David Gollaher tells the strange history of medicine's oldest enigma and most persistent ritual in Circumcision. From the extraordinarily painful initiation rite of the ancient Egyptians, through the Hebrew purification ritual, through circumcision's use by the rising medical community in the nineteenth century as prevention for ailments ranging from bedwetting to paralysis, the great mystery has been the persistence of the practice through vastly different social contexts.
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3.

What about "Female Genital Mutilation"? And Why Understanding Culture Matters in the First Place, in Daedalus » Read Now
by Richard A. Shweder. 24 pgs.

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...What About "Female Genital Mutilation"? And Why Understanding...Richard A. Shweder Female genital mutilation (FGM, also known as female...female circumcision" or "female...
4.

National Politics as International Process: The Case of Anti-Female-Genital-Cutting Laws, in Law & Society Review » Read Now
by Elizabeth Heger Boyle, Sharon E. Preves. 36 pgs.

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...terms "circumcision" and "female genital mutilation" have been criticized as...Layli Miller ( 1996 ) "Female Genital Mutilation in the United States: An...D. Debelle ( 1995...
5.

Responding to Female Genital Mutilation: The Australian Experience in Context, in Australian Journal of Social Issues » Read Now
by Ian Patrick. 20 pgs.

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...RESPONDING TO FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION: THE AUSTRALIAN EXPERIENCE...human rights standards. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is one such issue...National Education Program...
6.

Sisters Listening to Sisters: Women of the World Share Stories of Personal Empowerment (Chap. 13 "Female Genital Mutilation: Stories from Africa") » Read Now
by Peggy Andrews. 188 pgs.

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Drawing from her travels in 26 countries, Andrews presents a compelling picture of the universality of women's struggle for empowerment. Andrews has collected stories about the most serious issues in women's consciousness-raising. Among the stories are discussions of the value of women's work...
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Drawing from her travels in 26 countries, Andrews presents a compelling picture of the universality of women's struggle for empowerment. Andrews has collected stories about the most serious issues in women's consciousness-raising. Among the stories are discussions of the value of women's work, violence against women's bodies, women in the Presbyterian ministry, sexual harassment, and women's peace movements. These stories from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the United States tell us of women of varied backgrounds--rural villagers and urban squatters, street vendors and factory workers, professional and office workers, married and single mothers, school girls and college students. Andrews brings these stories together and shows us how women in the United States are a part of the world-wide struggle for women's economic, political, social, and cultural empowerment.
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7.

Where Human Rights Begin: Health, Sexuality, and Womenin the New Millennium ("Not Culture but Gender: Reconceptualizing Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting" begins on p. 35) » Read Now
by Wendy Chavkin, Ellen Chesler. 312 pgs.

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8.

On the Trail of a Taboo: Female Circumcision in the Islamic World, in Contemporary Review » Read Now
by Charles Foster. 6 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

...traditional practitioner of female circumcision, Om Atteya, to...explains why the severest forms of mutilation are not found in rigorously...Efua, and Elworthy, Scilla:...
9.

Ritual Female Genital Surgery among Ethiopian Jews, in Archives of Sexual Behavior » Read Now
by Nimrod Grisaru, Simcha Lezer, R. H. Belmaker. 5 pgs.

Collections: Psychology, Entire Library

...Grisaru , Simcha Lezer , R.H. Belmaker KEY WORDS: female circumcision; female genital mutilation; Ethiopian Jews. INTRODUCTION Ritual female genital surgery (RFGS) is a...
10.

Frontiers of Medicine in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, 1899-1940 (Chap. 7 "Midwifery Training and the Politics of Female Circumcision") » Read Now
by Heather Bell. 266 pgs.

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Much recent work on the history of colonial medicine argues that medicine was the handmaiden of colonial power and of capitalism. Dr Bell challenges this interpretation through careful investigation of the complicated relationship between medicine, politics, and capital in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan...
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Much recent work on the history of colonial medicine argues that medicine was the handmaiden of colonial power and of capitalism. Dr Bell challenges this interpretation through careful investigation of the complicated relationship between medicine, politics, and capital in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Subverting the accepted wisdom that colonial medicine consisted primarily of white male doctors treating black patients, Dr Bell highlights the important role of women and of African and non-European practitioners of Western medicine. She moves beyond the realm of medical practice to consider the relationship between medical research and colonial power. And she argues that a new international medicine emerged during the interwar period, modifying and even supplanting existing colonial relationships. Frontiers of Medicine examines the physical, epidemiological, and professional boundaries that endlessly preoccupies colonial officials. Emphasising the tenuousness of colonial power, it includes chapters on midwifery training and female circumcision, on health and racial ideology, and on the quest to find the yellow fever virus in East Africa. Accepted wisdom maintains that colonial medicine consisted primarily of white doctors treating black patients, that it was mainly about medical practice, and that it was driven by colonial relationships. Dr Bell subverts these notions with detailed evidence of the participation of women and native Africans as trained medical personnel in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, and demonstrates the tenuousness of colonial power in practice. There are chapters on midwifery training and female circumcision, on health and racial ideology, and on the quest to find yellow fever virus in East Africa. Dr Bell also investigates the relationship between colonial power and medical research, arguing that a new international medicine emerged during the inter-war period.
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11.

Globalizing Feminist Bioethics: Crosscultural Perspectives (Chap. 15 "Female Genital Circumcision and Conventionalist Ethical Relativism") » Read Now
by Gwen Anderson, Aida Santos, Rosemarie Tong. 368 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Globalizing Feminist Bioethics is a collection of new essays on the topic of international bioethics that developed out of the Third World Congress of the International Association of Bioethics in 1996. Rosemarie Tong is the primary editor of this collection, in which she, Gwen Anderson, and Aida...
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Globalizing Feminist Bioethics is a collection of new essays on the topic of international bioethics that developed out of the Third World Congress of the International Association of Bioethics in 1996. Rosemarie Tong is the primary editor of this collection, in which she, Gwen Anderson, and Aida Santos look at such international issues as female genital cutting, fatal daughter syndrome, use of reproductive technologies, male responsibility, pediatrics, breast cancer, pregnancy, and drug testing.
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12.

Healing the Sacred Yoni in the Land of Isis: Female Genital Mutilation Is Banned (Again) in Egypt, in Houston Journal of International Law » Read Now
by Susan A. Dillon. 38 pgs.

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...yoni in the land of Isis: female genital mutilation is banned (again) in Egypt...4) Female circumcision (female genital mutilation or FGM) has been practiced...upheld a...
13.

God Forbid: Religion and Sex in American Public Life (Chap. 12 "'To Make Martyrs of Their Children': 'Female Genital Mutilation,' Religious Legitimation, and the Constitution") » Read Now
by Kathleen M. Sands. 284 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

Since the 1980s, religion has been most visible in American public life when issues of sexuality and reproduction are at stake. Paradoxically, however, the voices that speak most loudly in the name of religion are often unschooled in religious history, world religions, theology, or ethics. As a...
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Since the 1980s, religion has been most visible in American public life when issues of sexuality and reproduction are at stake. Paradoxically, however, the voices that speak most loudly in the name of religion are often unschooled in religious history, world religions, theology, or ethics. As a result, religion in America is misrepresented as anxiously and obsessively concerned with sex, and as uniformly supporting the conservative agenda of "family values." This volume corrects that distortion in American public discourse. Its thirteen previously unpublished articles introduce scholarly perspectives on issues including the family, gay rights, abortion, welfare policy, prostitution, and assisted reproduction. They richly display the complexities and conflicts that exist not only between but within America's various religious traditions--for example, the pro-choice strain within Christian history, the support of many religious denominations for gay rights, and the criticism of patriarchal family structures within religious communities past and present. In these essays, contributors put forth views of sexual ethics that are just and compassionate, respectful of cultural pluralism, and attentive to democratic processes. Thorougly researched, lucidly written, and carefully argues, this anthology will debunk the claims of the Religious Right to be the only "religious" word on sexuality in America.
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14.

Encyclopedia of Reproductive Technologies (Chap. Nineteen "Female Circumcision/Female Genital Mutilation") » Read Now
by Annette Burfoot. 408 pgs.

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15.

Case Vignette: Child Abuse or Acceptable Cultural Norms, in Ethics & Behavior » Read Now
by Rene Brant. 10 pgs.

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...laws that directly address female genital mutilation. Many would argue that...forbidding the practice of female genital mutilation on girls under 18 years...Federal...
16.

Female Circumcision and the Politics of Knowledge: African Women in Imperialist Discourses » Read Now
by Obioma Nnaemeka. 288 pgs.

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