...Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and male circumcision are two procedures that are practiced in several cultures, and do not always give the male or female a say in the matter. There is a big debate regarding which practice, FGM or male circumcision is worse for the individual to endure. Even though there is much speculation, both continue to be implemented across many cultures. For example, in Africa, especially in Sudan, FGM is practiced and other cultures such as Judaism, practice male circumcision. Although many cultures require these practices, it is necessary to establish that there are many health risks associated with both. FGM has four ways it can be performed, while male circumcision is the removal of the foreskin and there is only one way to go about it. Although female genital mutilation and male circumcision are typically performed...
Words: 494 - Pages: 2
...Maria Lwantale Stephanie Wilhelm English 112 April 20, 2013 Genital mutilation: Negotiating Human Rights and Culture! I come from a small country called Uganda. We perform certain acts not because we want to, but as culture dictates. I remember being oblivious to genital mutilation, but all this changed during my years in high school because I attended boarding school. As adolescents, we enjoyed talking about our sexuality and bodies. One sunny Saturday evening, as we sat down in our dormitory, one of the girls asked if anyone had under gone genital mutilation just like her. Diana yelled out loud: “It was one of the most embarrassing and painful experiences I have ever gone through.” She said that it is held in a group setting and the act involves cutting off one’s labia minora. I was in total dismay! My family chose to stubbornly ignore certain cultural acts and this is one I am happy to have skipped judging from the information I know right now. The second time I heard of it was during my last year in high school. We had a social studies class that everyone used to enjoy so much because it had some very interesting topics. Interesting and controversial topics just like female genital mutilation. The topic at hand one chilly morning was female genital mutilation. I was prone to being absent minded and being mentally absent from class. Just hearing the three words woke me up. Ms. Kelly Miti described it as the cutting off of a few of a woman’s sexual parts which I found...
Words: 3711 - Pages: 15
...Junior Research Paper There are wide variations of traditional and religious practices worldwide, from the Japanese tea ceremony, to circumcision in underdeveloped countries. These customs, have been around for centuries and continue to be important aspects of everyday life. However, as today's society continues to progress, these traditions are questioned. The dreadful reality and unjust qualities of the practices have been revealed, as more information and research is conducted. Circumcision is a custom, highly common amongst women in 3rd world countries, and is used for numerous cases. Circumcision is the surgical process of removing skin surrounding the tip of a newborn male sexual organ. This surgical process is legal, and commonly safe in different parts of the world, including the United States and other developed countries. “For some families, circumcision is a religious ritual. Circumcision can also be a matter of family tradition, personal hygiene or preventive health care.” Circumcision may be a risky process, but the benefits far exceed the risks if done properly. Improved hygienics, is a huge beneficial factor of male circumcision. The process makes it easier for males to cleanse...
Words: 1834 - Pages: 8
...Female Genital Mutilation (also incorrectly known as “female circumcision”) is an extreme cultural practice prevalent in much of North and West Africa as well as in parts of the Middle East and Asia, in which young women and girls are forced to undergo a procedure that alters or rather, mutilates their reproductive organs. Although Female Genital Mutilation, or FGM, is seen in many cultures as a way to promote purity and chastity, this paper will argue that it is in fact a reflection of the “deep-rooted inequality between sexes, and constitutes an extreme form of discrimination against women.” (WHO, 2014) Female Genital Mutilation is defined by any procedure that alters the exterior parts of a female’s reproductive organ. The literature describes four main types of FGM. The first type is called clitoridectomy. In this process surgery involves the full or partial removal of the clitoris. A second type is called excision and this occurs when the clitoris is also fully or partially removed. In addition, the labia minora is removed leaving just the labia majora intact. Infibulation is the most severe form of FGM and occurs when a seal is formed over the opening of the vagina by removing the inner or outer labia. A small hole is left for the passage of menstrual fluid and urine. The hole is...
Words: 1791 - Pages: 8
...Journal of Public Health and Epidemiology Vol. 4(5), pp. 117-122, May 2012 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/JPHE DOI: 10.5897/JPHE11.194 ISSN 2141-2316 ©2012 Academic Journals Full Length Research Paper Female genital mutilation in Southeast Nigeria: A survey on the current knowledge and practice Ibekwe Perpetus C.*, Onoh Robinson C, Onyebuchi Azubike K., Ezeonu Paul O. and Ibekwe Rosemary O. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Federal Medical Centre, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State. Accepted 9 April, 2012 Female genital mutilation (FGM) has been recognised as a major reproductive health problem and a dehumanising practice that has resisted change especially in developing countries. The study reviews the current knowledge and practice of FGM in Southeast Nigeria. This is a questionnaire based descriptive study involving women of reproductive age in Abakaliki, South east Nigeria. A semistructured questionnaire was distributed to 320 women by simple random sampling. Information sought included the socio-demographic characteristics, and personal information on FGM with regards to knowledge and practice. Two hundred and sixty (81.3%) were appropriate for analysis. The mean age of the respondents was 28.6 years ± 5.4 SD. Most had formal education, with tertiary education contributing 60.8%. A high percentage was aware of FGM, and the problem associated with it was 91 and 72%, respectively. Half of the respondents (49.6%) were genitally mutilated while almost the...
Words: 4203 - Pages: 17
...preventive measures in handicap are different from medical management in type and level. For instance, when a child has a cerebral palsy due to prematurity, he would need drugs and physiotherapy. But preventing prematurity would need, among other things, health education and pregnancy monitoring. Like cerebral palsy, or seizures, sexually abused street children are merely a symptom, but the causes are derived from elsewhere. Of course it [is] the symptoms that have to be dealt with in an attempt to help the children whose cases require special intervention due to the urgent and often difficult circumstances. While Marzouki (2002), concentrates on the need to look at the symptoms to help abused children with proper intervention strategies, this paper still believes in the need to also understand the precipitating factors for child abuse. For it is, only...
Words: 3119 - Pages: 13
...Fatima Said, of Americas Top Model, defiantly put female genital cutting in the minds of Americans and people around the world. She opened up a topic that many people had no idea about, and now are very interested in knowing more about. This essay will give a brief history of Somalia (Fatima’s home country), and then it will go into female genital cutting in Somalia. Somalia is a country in eastern Africa. The countries of Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya surround it. Somalis are thought to have been decedents from Africans and Arab people. The main languages in Somalia are Arabic, Italian and English. Islam is practiced through out the region. The majorities of Somalis are livestock herders and cultivate the land that they have. (www.cia.gov). Somalia became independent and its own country in 1960, when it got independence from England and Italy. Somalia has not had a stable government between 1991 and 2000. However, during 2000 a parliamentary government was formed but later on expired in 2003. In 2004, a new parliament was organized and a president was elected- Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed. Since 1991, Somalia has been overwhelmed with chaos and anarchy. Somalia had gone through a difficult time in 1992 when a drought happened in Africa and was combined with a civil war. Somalia went through an intense famine that killed approximately 300,000 people. (www.cia.gov). There were many efforts done by the United Stated and the United Nations to help Somalia get through the drought and...
Words: 1587 - Pages: 7
...CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Female circumcision is a traditional practice performed on girl children as part of initiation rituals into adulthood. This inquiry seeks to demystify the secretiveness surrounding this practice, seeking to establish the reasons why female circumcision remains a taboo subject. In doing so, the researcher will attempt to establish the local community’s perception of female circumcision and elucidate some of the reasons practitioners cite as benefits of female circumcision. The research focuses on Mabvuku and Tafara suburbs because there are people of different ethnic groups with varying customs and values that shape their behaviour and way of life. Mabvuku and Tafara have an unusually high concentration of people of Malawian, Mozambican and Zambian origin who migrated to seek work mostly before the Zimbabwean independence. Due to this diversity, women and girls who have undergone female circumcision were interviewed. Mabvuku is a high-density suburb some seventeen kilometres east of Harare. It is classified as a suburb or township of Harare, with the Harare City Council constituting local government. This inquiry is exploratory, descriptive and qualitative in nature, based on interviews with women who had undergone the practice in Mabvuku-Tafara. The inquiry can be termed therefore, a qualitative research done through a case study design. This research method is preferred because the researcher is exploring a subjective understanding of social reality...
Words: 24160 - Pages: 97
...Self- Mutilation There are a number of different ways to define what self-mutilation entails. It is one of the most commonly used phrases, but researchers and mental health professionals have not been able to agree on one specific definition to explain self-inflicted injury. Hence, self-harm, self-injury and self-mutilation are the common phrases used to refer to this type of behavior ( Zila & Kiselica, 2001). Many people tend to associate self mutilation with suicide, when in fact they are very different. Therefore, when attempting to understand self-mutilation it is important to recognize the distinct differences between self mutilation and suicide. Suicide is an attempt to depart from pain through ending one’s life. While self mutilation is an effort to create relief from a negative affective incident, it differs for each person. It is used as a means for a person to temporarily deal with the pain, rather than abort it all together. In suicidal patients, pain is viewed as everlasting, which makes them feel hopeless. While, on the other hand self-injurers often portray an optimistic attitude (Walsh, 2006). Hence, there is a big difference between the behaviors and intent, which is why it is important to recognize these differences. Self-injurious behavior tends to be separated into two general categories: culturally sanctioned and deviant self mutilation. Culturally sanctioned rituals and practices comprise of ear piercing in the modern U.S culture, sacrament dances amongst...
Words: 4265 - Pages: 18
...UsMembershipSubscriptionAllies & FriendsContact us Culture And Child Abuse In Nigeria Charity N. Uzuegbu Department of Social Work, University of Nigeria, Nsukka Abstract Cultural practises have been observed to increase the abuse of children in Nigeria. This paper discusses the effects of cultural practices on the abuse of children in Nigeria. Some of the cultural practices discussed are early marriage, female genital mutilation, and desire for large family size. It was suggested that public enlightenment programmes and free social services should be provided to help control the situation. Introduction The problem of child abuse is very prevalent in the Nigerian society. The problem arose as result of various factors which include economic, social, and cultural. It is accompanied by adverse consequences to the child, family and society. This paper discusses the influence of some of the cultural practices prevalent in Nigeria on child abuse. The aim of the study is to bring to limelight how some cultural practices increase the problem of child abuse in Nigeria, and suggest ways of controlling the situation. Data for the study was collected through the use of participant observation and secondary documents such as previous research works. Child abuse has been defined as the “physical or emotional mistreatment and neglect of children or the sexual exploitation in circumstances for which the parents can be held responsible through acts of commission or omission” (Doye, 1990). The word...
Words: 7972 - Pages: 32
...Cultural Relativism and Problems Associated with This Approach Cultural anthropology is the study of cultural variation among people. An essential concept that professional anthropologists apply in their fieldworks is - cultural relativism - an approach to study of the nature and role of values in a culture without judgment and comparison to their own. According to the Study Guide, Smillie and Kenny state that major contribution to the study of the concept of cultural relativism can be attributed to Boas and his students, who challenged a wide-spread idea that societies are staged along a line from the most undeveloped to most “civilized.” Rather, they suggested that each individual culture should be understood in terms of its unique beliefs and ideals. That is, in order to observe and understand how people live and operate in a particular culture, it is important to consider the way other view the world within the framework of their culture. A great example of this idea is depicted by Laura Bohannan in her work “Shakespeare in the bush.” With an argument in mind, that human nature is more or less universal, she travels to Africa and discusses a famous Shakespeare’s tragic play with native people of a tribe Tiv, expecting only slight variations in its interpretation accounted for discrepancies in culture. To her surprise, Bohannan finds out that customs, beliefs, translations and culture have an enormous role in the perception and interpretation of Shakespeare’s play and that...
Words: 2156 - Pages: 9
...doctors, social workers, psychologists and pedagogues. Social skills form the foundation for social proficiency. Moreover, Bremer and Smith (2004, p.11) have defined the social competence as “the point to which students are able to establish as well as maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships. Along with gaining the peer acceptance, upholding friendships, and terminate negative or maleficent interpersonal relationships”. This fleeting analysis on the importance of social proficiency for youth, basically highlight the strategy for teaching social skill to youth with incompetency. Importance of Social Skills: Social skills also provision the constructive growth of healthy adult interactions with peers and family member. Research by Hair, et al (2006) observes that adolescents who have concrete...
Words: 4065 - Pages: 17
...Nature vs. Nurture On the great debate of Nature vs. Nurture I was once the firm believer that one’s identity was shaped through social variables (nurture). Upon further research on the topic my opinion has changed and I believe that biological and social variables both help to shape ones identity and personality. When we are born we all have male or female predispositions. Hormones are released which in turn increase those male or female behaviors (Nature) shaping our gender identity. There was study on a boy Bruce Reimer who had suffered genital mutilation while undergoing a circumcision procedure at 6 months of age. His parents then decided for Bruce to undergo “gender-reassignment” as they were told that gender was determined by environmental variables. Bruce now became Brenda and was raised as a female. While growing Brenda still exhibited male qualities, dismissing “female” toys, trying to use male restrooms, attempt to urinate standing up (despite the fact that Brenda did not have male anatomy). Her brother had even suggested the only difference between them was that Brenda had long hair, and he had short. Although Brenda’s parents had done everything to shape Brenda’s gender identity into female, Brenda still rejected the feminine identity. Brenda’s parents informed her of the gender- reassignment surgery, and at 14 years of age Brenda cut off all of her hair and started living life as “David”. David was able to restore his male identity and live his life out until he...
Words: 454 - Pages: 2
...I chose to interview a female, in her thirties, that is from Ghana. She is married with two children and works in the mental health field doing research for the Veterans Association. The interview took place in an office setting and it was just the two of us present. The thing that I feel went well in the interview was that it felt more like a natural conversation than a formal interview. The atmosphere was quiet and we both seemed comfortable talking with each other. I cannot think of anything that went wrong during the interview and I feel power was distributed equally between myself and the person I chose to interview. Going into the interview I do not feel I had any preconceived notions about the person I chose to interview or her culture....
Words: 766 - Pages: 4
...Female Circumcision Human Rights? We all have them, don’t we? That is the question I had to ask myself repeatedly while reading about this controversial issue. How far can or should you take the issue when dealing with cultural traditions? Over the past 3 weeks, I have done a lot of research on this topic and have found many things that I did not know. At first, when I read the two articles, honestly, I was more grossed out than anything. I did not really care; I just thought how weird it was going to be to try to write a paper on this topic. The main thing that ran through my mind was, “Why do people even care, men get circumcised every day.” However, after doing research and learning more, I decided it was so much more than that. Marrilee H. Salmon, a professor of science, states in her article how unmoral and degrading the process of female circumcision is. I strongly agree with her opinion and the opinion of many other feminist anthropologists, who are desperately trying to help eliminate this procedure. Salmon also goes on to tell how female circumcision is an act of power more than anything, giving men power and/or authority over women. And it truly is, I mean how is this beneficial to women at all? Every one is entitled to their own opinion and mine is expressed exactly in Marrilee’s article when she says, “it’s also called genital mutilation!” That is exactly what this is, “MUTILATION,” and I definitely agree with putting a stop to it. I also feel...
Words: 1949 - Pages: 8
