Female Genital Cutting

The practice of female genital cutting, sometimes referred to as female circumcision and common in a number of African states, has attracted increasing attention in recent years and mobilized strong international opposition. While it typically produces a visceral response of horror and revulsion in Westerners, the practice is widely regarded in some cultures as essential for proper development into womanhood and is defended by women who have themselves experienced it and who have had the procedure performed on their own daughters. It is also perceived in many Islamic communities as religiously prescribed, although most Islamic clerics do not condone the practice. In this study, sociologist Elizabeth Boyle examines this controversial issue from the perspectives of the international system, governments, and individuals. Drawing on previous scholarship, records of international organizations, demographic surveys, and the popular media, Boyle examines how the issue is perceived and acted upon at international, national, and individual levels. Grounding her work in the sociological theory of neoinstitutionalism, Boyle describes how the choices made by governments and individual women are influenced by the often conflicting principles of individual human rights and sovereign autonomy. She concludes that while globalization may exacerbate such conflicts, it can ultimately lead to social change.

Female "circumcision" or, more precisely, female genital cutting (FGC), remains an important cultural practice in many African countries, often serving as a coming-of-age ritual. It is also a practice that has generated international dispute and continues to be at the center of debates over women's rights, the limits of cultural pluralism, the balance of power between local cultures, international human rights, and feminist activism. In our increasingly globalized world, these practices have also begun immigrating to other nations, where transnational complexities vex debates about how to resolve the issue. Bringing together thirteen essays, Transcultural Bodies provides an ethnographically rich exploration of FGC among African diasporas in the United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia. Contributors analyze changes in ideologies of gender and sexuality in immigrant communities, the frequent marginalization of African women's voices in debates over FGC, and controversies over legislation restricting the practice in immigrant populations.

3 What are the issues?

1. Background and history

This book describes essential operative techniques that can be used to anatomically reconstruct the outer female genital in acquired deformities derived from ritual genital mutilation/cutting, and diseases causing similar deforming defects. Following an introduction with general insights on the topic, the main chapters deal with basic considerations and special anatomical information. With the help of high-quality videos and images, the reader receives detailed instructions on clitoral and vulvar reconstruction with techniques invented by the author, named the NMCS-procedure, the OD-flap and the aOAP-flap procedures. The book is rounded out with chapters describing postoperative care and how to manage complications. The integrity of their outer genitals is important for patients’ physical and psychological wellbeing. As such, the vulva is now receiving increasing attention and will likely continue to grow in importance in plastic surgery. The author, who has developed outstanding procedures for vulvar and clitoral reconstruction over the years, shares his considerable experience and hopes to highlight the importance of these methods to overcome the burden of female genital mutilation/cutting.

"This book discusses the definition and types of FGM and explores the common justifications for the practice, along with the incidence in Africa, global laws, legal issues, rights and religion. Ethical considerations are examined, as are progress and the role of culture. The book concludes with thoughts on the movement from tradition to cultural evolution."--Provided by publisher.

This urgently important, unflinching, yet sensitive examination raises awareness about female genital cutting and provides essential information to help end its practice. According to a 2014 World Health Organization (WHO) fact sheet, more than 125 million girls and women alive today have been subjected to some form of genital cutting in twenty-nine countries in Africa and the Middle East. Census figures (2000) show that 228,000 women and girls in the United States have suffered from such procedures or are at future risk. This indispensible volume is packed with resources to support women's physical, psychological, and emotional health and healing.