Genital Autonomy and Sexual Well-being

Earp, Brian D.; Steinfeld, Rebecca

doi:10.1007/s11930-018-0141-x

Cited by 36 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 126 publications

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“…Global concerns regarding FGC/M and strategies developed to safeguard potential victims are premised on the potentially traumatic emotional and physical effects of these practices. 46 But while the need to protect potential victims is of the utmost importance, evidence from this research-while limited in its scale and generalisabilitysuggests that current approaches to this protection risk traumatising families, and re-traumatising child victims of FGC/M in adulthood. Such experiences undermine relationships between families and their care providers and the likelihood of effective safeguarding or indeed healthcare being provided in both FGC/M-related contexts and others.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

‘Putting salt on the wound’: a qualitative study of the impact of FGM-safeguarding in healthcare settings on people with a British Somali heritage living in Bristol, UK

et al. 2020

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ObjectivesThis research documents the experiences of people with Somali heritage with female genital mutilation (FGM)-safeguarding services in healthcare and whether such services are considered appropriate by the people who encounter them.DesignSix focus groups conducted with ethnic Somalis living in Bristol, during the summer of 2018, divided by gender and whether people had experienced FGM-safeguarding as adults or children.SettingParticipants experienced FGM-safeguarding in primary and secondary care.Participants30 people (21 women and 9 men), identified through local organisations or snowball sampling. All participants were of Somali heritage and aged over 18.ResultsGovernment priorities to support those who have experienced female genital cutting/mutilation (FGC/M) are being undermined by their own approaches to protect those considered at risk. Participants argued that approaches to FGM-safeguarding were based on outdated stereotypes and inaccurate evidence which encouraged health and other service providers to see every Somali parent as a potential perpetrator of FGC/M. Female participants described providers in a range of healthcare settings, including Accident and Emergency Departments (A&E), antenatal care and general practice, as ‘fixated’ with FGC/M, who ignored both their health needs and their experience as victims. Participants felt stigmatised and traumatised by their experience. This undermined their trust in health services, producing a reticence to seek care, treatment delays and reliance on alternative sources of care. Associated recommendations include developing more accurate evidence of risk, more appropriate education for healthcare providers and more collaborative approaches to FGM-safeguarding.ConclusionAll the participants involved in this study are committed to the eradication of FGC/M. But the statutory approaches currently adopted to enable this are considered ill-conceived, unnecessarily heavy-handed and ultimately detrimental to this. Recognising these common aims can enable the development of services better able to protect and support those at risk of FGC/M in ways which are culturally competent and sensitive.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

‘Putting salt on the wound’: a qualitative study of the impact of FGM-safeguarding in healthcare settings on people with a British Somali heritage living in Bristol, UK

et al. 2020

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“…Current scholarship on FGC and MC emphasizes a seemingly unresolvable dilemma in which parents and policymakers need to decide (e.g. Earp and Steinfeld, 2018; Hellsten, 2004; Johnsdotter et al, 2018; Shweder, 2013; Svoboda, 2013): (1) whether girls should have the same access to cultural identity-promoting genital rituals as boys by allowing a minor cutting or ‘pricking’ of their genitalia (e.g. Ahmadu, 2000; Arora and Jacobs, 2016; Cohen, 1997; Gordon, 2018; Onsongo, 2017; Van Howe, 2011) or (2) whether boys should be granted the same human rights as girls with the ritual cutting of their genitalia being regarded as a breach of the right to bodily integrity (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Why did I circumcise him?’ Unexpected comparisons to male circumcision in a qualitative study on female genital cutting among Kurdish–Norwegians

et al. 2020

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Based on fieldwork that aimed to gather more knowledge on female genital cutting among Kurdish–Norwegians, in this article we report on how research participants would often talk about male circumcision instead. Informed by current scholarship and public discourse on female genital cutting and male circumcision, we identified three themes when analysing how and why the participants would talk about male circumcision rather than female genital cutting: (1) the condemnation of female genital cutting; (2) the acceptability of male circumcision and (3) the questioning of the acceptability of male circumcision. We do not attempt to provide solutions to whether some forms of male circumcision are less, equally or more harmful than some forms of female genital cutting, or whether they are comparable and both should thus either be legitimized or banned. Rather we aim to provide insights into these dilemmas by the use of the concept of ‘mapping controversies’ associated with actor–network theory. We further make use of the slippery slope argument to explore how the research participants’ views shed light on political reluctance to treat female genital cutting and male circumcision in the same way in the Norwegian context. While we are not in a position to say that the views shared are the same in other social groups, or in other countries, we argue that the Norwegian government’s different treatment of female genital cutting and male circumcision changes the meaning of ritual boy circumcision and that this may result in parents deciding not to circumcise their sons.

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“…Bajszczak et al reported that after the second gonad was removed, the external genitalia were surgically altered, and estrogen and antiandrogen therapy was applied (to develop breasts and eliminate body hair) some psychological improvement was achieved. 64 59 Earp, Steinfeld (2018): 8. 60 Carmack, Notini, Earp et al (2015).…”

Section: Two Cases From Poland Of Postponing Surgerymentioning

confidence: 99%

The Epistemic Injustice Expressed in “Normalizing” Surgery on Children with Intersex Traits

Ziemińska

2020

Diametros

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I present the notion of epistemic injustice coined by Miranda Fricker and apply it to the situation of people with intersex traits, especially intersex children who are the subjects of “normalizing” surgery. Several studies from Polish hospitals show that both early “normalizing” surgery and the decision to postpone such surgery can result in harm to an intersex child. For this reason, I claim that “normalizing” surgery is only an expression of the epistemic hermeneutical injustice existing before the surgery and that its source is the lack of an empirically adequate notion of sex characteristics. The binary notion is too simple to grasp intersex traits, and this epistemic dysfunction turns into practical harm. In contrast to Morgan Carpenter, I defend the nonbinary gender category as being important to limiting “normalizing” surgery.

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Genital Autonomy and Sexual Well-being

Cited by 36 publications

References 126 publications

‘Putting salt on the wound’: a qualitative study of the impact of FGM-safeguarding in healthcare settings on people with a British Somali heritage living in Bristol, UK

‘Putting salt on the wound’: a qualitative study of the impact of FGM-safeguarding in healthcare settings on people with a British Somali heritage living in Bristol, UK

‘Why did I circumcise him?’ Unexpected comparisons to male circumcision in a qualitative study on female genital cutting among Kurdish–Norwegians

The Epistemic Injustice Expressed in “Normalizing” Surgery on Children with Intersex Traits

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