VIDEO: U.S. Judge Condoning Female Genital Mutilation puts 513,000 girls and women in the U.S. at risk

Female genital mutilation or cutting

The Office of Women’s Health defines Female Genital Mutilation as follows:

Female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) means piercing, cutting, removing, or sewing closed all or part of a girl’s or woman’s external genitals for no medical reason. Researchers estimate more than 513,000 girls and women in the U.S. have experienced or are at risk of FGM/C.1 Worldwide, as many as 140 million girls and women alive today have been cut.2 FGM/C is often a part of the culture in countries where it is practiced. But FGM/C has no health benefits and can cause long-term health problems. FGM/C is against the law in the U.S. and many other countries. [Emphasis added]

A Michigan Judge has ruled that outlawing Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is un-Constitutional. In this Jamie Glazov Moment, Jamie focuses on horrific surrender to Sharia is accelerating in the U.S.

Female Genital Mutilation is Illegal in the United States

According to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Women’s Health:

FGM/C is against the law in the United States. The United States and many other countries consider FGM/C a violation of women’s rights and a form of child abuse. Federal law makes it a crime to perform FGM/C on a girl younger than 18 or to take or attempt to take a girl out of the United States for FGM/C. Girls and women who have experienced FGM/C are not at fault and have not broken any U.S. laws.

Why is Female Genital Mutilation Against the Law?

FGM/C can cause immediate and long-term medical problems. How bad these problems are depends on:7

  • How clean (sterile) the place is where cutting happens. FGM/C is illegal in most countries and must be done in secret. In most of these countries, FGM/C is usually done on a floor, table, bed, or the ground. But, in some countries, such as Egypt, a loophole in the law allows doctors to do FGM/C in a sterile, medical site.4
  • The experience of the person performing FGM/C and the tools used. The cutting is often done with glass, razor blades, or knives. The tools may not be sterilized between cuttings. In type 3 FGM/C, the sewing may be done with thorns and without sterile thread.
  • The type of FGM/C. Type 3 causes more health problems than type 1 or type 2.
  • The general health of the girl or woman

The type of FGM/C done may affect how much and how serious health problems are after FGM/C. Type 3 causes more health problems than type 1 or type 2.

Immediate medical problems can include:7

  • Severe pain. Girls usually don’t get any pain medicine before or after they are cut.
  • Serious bleeding
  • Infection of the wound. Girls can get fever, shock, and even die if the infection is not treated.
  • Trauma. Girls are held down often against their will and may not understand why.
  • Problems going to the bathroom, including burning and pain
  • Tetanus and other infectious diseases, such as HIV, from unsterilized cutting tools
  • Death. Researchers do not know how many girls die because of FGM/C. Few records are kept, and deaths that may have been caused by FGM/C are often not reported as related to FGM/C.8

FGM/C can cause long-term problems with a girl’s or woman’s physical, mental, and sexual health. The type of FGM/C done may affect how much and how serious the health problems are. Type 2 and type 3 cause more serious health problems than type 1.

Long-term health problems include:9

  • Infections, such as genital abscesses (sores filled with pus that must be drained) and infectious diseases such as hepatitis B. In one large study, more infections and infectious diseases such as urinary tract infectionsbacterial vaginosis, and HIV were found in women with type 3 FGM/C.10 This is probably because the damage caused by FGM/C can make vaginal tissue more likely to tear during sex. This increases the risk of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
  • Problems having sex. Extra scar tissue from FGM/C (most common after type 2 or type 3) can cause pain, especially during sex. This can lead to a lack of interest in sex, vaginal dryness, and lower overall satisfaction.11 Scarring can also cause vaginal tissue to be less elastic than normal vaginal tissue. It might not stretch as easily for sex or childbirth.
  • Depression and anxiety. Girls may not understand what is being done to them or why. The effects of this painful experience are similar to those of post-traumatic stress disorder. Girls or women who have already been cut and are living in the United States may be disgraced or humiliated when they receive medical care.12,13 They may also fear that health care providers in the United States do not know how to take care of them.14 This can make adjusting to a new country more challenging.
  • Painful and prolonged menstrual periods. Type 3 FGM/C may cause some girls and women to have painful menstrual periods. Some women are left with only a small opening for urinating and menstrual bleeding. They may not be able to pass all of their menstrual blood. This can cause pain and periods that are longer than normal. Some women may also have infections over and over again.
  • Urinary problems. Type 3 FGM/C may slow or strain the normal flow of urine, which can cause urinary tract infections. Urine can also get trapped behind the scar and crystallize, forming hard masses called bladder, or urinary, stones.
  • Fistula, an opening between the urethra and vagina that lets urine run into the vagina. This can happen when the urethra is damaged during FGM/C. Fistula causes incontinence and other problems, including odors, and can cause girls and women to become social outcasts.

Girls and women who come to the United States and have already been cut may face additional health problems. Doctors and other health care providers may not know how to adequately treat the girls’ and women’s unique health needs. In some cases, health care providers lack training on counseling and caring for girls and women who have been cut.9

To learn more about FGM visit U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Women’s Health.

RELATED ARTICLE: New York Times Reveals Painful Truths About ‘Sex Change’ Surgery

EDITORS NOTE: The featured photo is by Eye for Ebony on Unsplash.

1 reply

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *