Female Genital Mutilation Essay

The practice of female genital mutilation, where the female genital organs are altered or removed for non-medical reasons, still occurs to this day in some cultures. Female genital mutilation can include removing the clitoris, labia minora and labia majora, infibulation where the opening to the vagina is restricted, and other harmful procedures such as scraping and cauterizing the genital area (Female Genital Mutilation). The procedure is usually performed on girls under the age of 15 and the damage to their physical and psychological welfare is lifelong.
Although there are various reasons given for a female being subjected to female genital mutilation, there is no religious or medical justification for the mutilation. Ultimately, it is performed …show more content…
This barbaric practice has even been performed in the United States, where recently “two physicians and a medical office manager were indicted on charges stemming from the alleged female genital mutilation of two young girls, about six to eight years old” and are believed to have mutilated other victims (Brink). Consequently, this case has awakened many in the western world to the abuses that have been …show more content…
Prevalent in some cultures, the genitals of young females are mutilated to control their sexuality, with most girls not having any choice in the matter. The damage to the girls is not only physical but also psychological and the effects last a lifetime. With the recent indictments in Michigan of health care workers accused of performing female genital mutilation, it shows that the abuses are occurring within the United States. Until the practice is banned worldwide and all countries outlaw the practice, regrettably there will be many millions more victims who will suffer this horrific