STOP FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION IN THE UK

It is still done out of the women's belief that no man will want to marry a girl who is 'intact'. Let us hope the older women will start to believe that this is no longer true of younger men.

Also we should remember that if you had this done yourself as a child, then it may seem normal and "right" to you - this is being a "proper woman" - people rationalise what is, and tell themselves it is how things should be - uncomfortable to confront being told that it is no longer acceptable.

I think those of us who have struggled with being on the receiving end of misogyny will feel some relief to witness the change in view of those Somalian men, whose older female relatives have most likely been brain-washed into perpetuating this practice from birth. It does go back to the wishes and desires of men, but let's see whether they now support the campaign.

We all internalise sexism and misogyny and this is an extreme example.

baNANA it seems that the practice is no longer misogynstic, as explained in earler posts

Sorry Anagram didn't read your previous post until now, and have not watched Newsnight lately. France are right to crack down, it's utterly barbaric and the well being of these young girls should be placed above cultural customs. I for one regard a culture that wants to mutilate its female children in this manner vastly inferior to ours and I don't care who I offend by saying that.

'On occasions'!? It's going on all the time - see my post re Newsnight above!

Just signed anything to stop this appalling practice. I understand it has on occasions been covertly carried out in the UK. Misogyny in some cultures is staggering.

Have signed. whenim64 is correct in saying that this horrendous practice is being perpetuated by the older women - it is carried out by them not men. The poor girls have their lives ruined by this and many die of shock and/or infection. I'm sure sterile instruments are not used. There are various degrees of mutilation the worst resulting in the husband having to 'cut' his wife on their wedding night and the woman having to have to be cut again when she gives birth.
Surely a man doesn't want his wife to dread having him near her because of the dreadful pain. It's almost as if the girls' female relatives want their daughters to suffer because they did. It takes a brave woman to refuse to let her daughter undergo this practice.

Newsnight has been covering this subject for the past couple of nights, and yes, it does seem to be that it is the older women in the family or community who keep this tradition going. Apparently they have cracked down really hard on it in France, with several prosecutions, so now girls are being brought over to this country to have it done because although it's illegal here as well, there have never been any prosecutions!
It truly is a disgrace that the government and/or police seem to be turning a blind eye to this barbaric practice.

jess thanks for new link. have signed and shared on FB.

Unbelievably, when I raised this issue on some other forums I have been accused of 'cultural insensitivity'. One of the aspects I find most upsetting is that it is usually the girl's mother and grandmother who insist on it. We can't do much about other countries but we sure as hell should stop it happening in our own country.

All done.Knew this went on,E is of dual heritage and her father is west African,I don't know if this is practiised in sierre leone,but that could be her heritage.

I watched several Somalian girls and women being interviewed a couple of days ago. They claim it is their mothers and grandmothers who are perpetuating this. Somalian men living in Manchester were interviewed afterwards and all of them said they don't think this ritual should be allowed, it's the old way that women are making their daughters and grandaughters keep to. They seemed to regard it as unnecessary. Horrendous practice - it showed several examples of crude dissection and stitching, which has to be cut open to enable childbirth.

I had always beleved it was a practice men demanded, but the message from this programme was that they don't now.

This is another petition on the Government site this time. For anyone who would like to sign. Remember the bad old days when the police did not take domestic violence seriously? This is yet another example of them avoiding a tricky issue relating to the abuse of females. There has, maybe, been too much wariness about multiculturalism and not offending minority groups. But it is estimated that every day little babies and little girls are being abused in this way, in this country.
It takes 100,000 signatures on one of these e-petitions to raise the question of whether there should be a parliamentary debate. In these days of social networking, surely this is not difficult.

epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/35313

Yes, I've signed this.

Signed and shared

WELL DONE Annobl, just signed...Genital Mutilation is disgusting!..but wait & see political correctness will win..we will be accused of Islamophobia.

Done.

Thanks for the prompt Annobel Just signed. It is beyond belief that this vile practice still goes on in this country.

Done.

Done.

.....and me. To think that this happens in our so called civilised society - and they get away with it.

I have signed this too.

done