Western feminists and FGC

[SingingAnalyst]

In 1979, [Gloria] Steinem wrote the article on female genital mutilation that brought it into the American public's consciousness; the article, "The International Crime of Female Genital Mutilation," was published in the March 1979 issue of Ms. The article reported on the "75 million women suffering with the results of genital mutilation." According to Steinem, "The real reasons for genital mutilation can only be understood in the context of the patriarchy: men must control women's bodies as the means of production, and thus repress the independent power of women's sexuality.” -Wikipedia
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Others [scholars], however, argue that Western feminists should defer to women living in communities that practice FGCs who have a long tradition of anti-FGC activism; a few
say that Western feminists should not be involved in FGC-related scholarship or activism at all.

from The Evolution of Feminist Thought About Female Genital Cutting
Sociologists for Women in Society Fact Sheet
Prepared by Lisa Wade, Department of Sociology, Occidental College
Fall 2009