IS CIRCUMCISION MUTILATION?
Opinions differ, but in this article, we address the power of language and the different perspectives of genital mutilation.
The power of language has important social consequences. All modern organisations are aware of this. This article will discuss the differences in how individual circumcised men see their own circumcision and what the impact the different terms can have on the understanding and tone of the argument presented.
This week we received two messages from men with completely different views on how the people around them and people on the internet were discussing circumcision and them as circumcised men. One claimed that he was angry that people kept calling him “damaged” or “mutilated” when he didn’t feel like he had been harmed in any way by being circumcised as an infant.
The other felt strongly that using the word “circumcision” instead of “mutilation” downplayed the procedure and enabled the practice to continue without the scrutiny that it deserves.
What are the terms being debated?
Let’s look at both sides of the debate, but first let’s understand the terms:
Mutilate – from the Latin: mutilus. is cutting off or causing injury to a body part of a person so that the part of the body is permanently damaged, detached or disfigured.
1. To physically harm as to impair use, notably by cutting off or otherwise disabling a vital part, such as a limb.
2. To destroy beyond recognition.
3. (figurative) To render imperfect or defective.
Circumcise – from Latin circumcīdō [“cut around”], from circum [“about, around; through”] + caedō [“cut, hew”].
1. To surgically remove the foreskin (prepuce) from a penis (male).
2. (sometimes prescribed) To surgically remove the clitoris (clitoridectomy), clitoral hood, or labia (female).
The word circumcise (to cut through) is appropriate, but the mutilation brings attention to the fact that some men have been impaired. Some feel they have had their genitalia destroyed beyond recognition. These men feel very strongly that they have been rendered imperfect or defective.
So which is more accurate? Well… BOTH!
Listening to those affected
We must understand that men have been harmed physically and psychologically. An example of someone being content with their circumcision does not invalidate other peoples negative experiences. If numerous men are telling us they are harmed we MUST listen.
All too often society assumes that men don’t complain, nothing could be further from the truth and we do men a disservice by perpetuating the stereotype of unemotional, unfeeling men, complaints deserve recognition and resolution.
If the term “mutilation” adequately describes the experiences of the individual, isn’t that an alarm bell that their story is significant?
Lots of men who have seen their GP for foreskin issues have been prescribed a circumcision despite the option for alternatives. They are denied other options, and not told of the harms. This does not lead to an informed decision with many men regretting the surgery after experiencing the impact circumcision has on their penis.
Many men seek out 15 Square as they are not being told this information by trained medical professionals.
Not everyone feels the same
We must also acknowledge that there are different sections of our society that do not share these views, for them the language around surgical alteration of one’s body is a matter of understanding and consent, providing access to information in such a way that one is able to make a reasoned and informed judgement.
In most cases, parents honestly believe they are making the best decision for their child. Unfortunately, taking the bodily autonomy away from a child leads to resentment in many men.
Our perspective at 15 Square is that no parent or culture is trying to actively harm their children, but we urge all parents and cultures to be mindful.
This is also true for FGM. The same logic that equates Female Circumcision and Female Genital Mutilation does so for Male Circumcision. The common factor is the recognition of harm.
Parents are often ignorant of the serious damage that they are doing, and cultural values can cloud their clear impartial judgement. They would not consider themselves as “mutilating” their child, however the potential harm caused necessitates the term. For some men however, calling them damaged, defective, mutilated, or harmed is not helpful to them.
It is a case by case basis for each individual to decide whether they consider the practice “mutilation”. Some men have not been damaged, but it has instead managed to relieve them of serious medical conditions.
In these situations, the same as the removal of a cancerous tumour, we cannot call the practice mutilating.
The power of words is no small matter!
We do not have to look too far to find examples of how the right words at the right time can drastically affect the most reasonable person’s understanding of the issue at hand.
Words such as “swarm” and “infestation” have historically been used to encourage the public to associate some groups as undesirable or as vermin and pests. This othering of groups is still used today, it turns us from the healthy us vs the problem to us vs them paradigm where the issue changes from actual to blame.
As a society we must try and understand what is the root cause of any given issue is, be it war, famine, lack of socioeconomic opportunities, religious and cultural differences and oppression of groups based on basic unchangeable factors such as melanin content of skin or sexual preference. The othering of groups loses sight of the real issue and converts it to a basic tribal argument of us vs them. Turning the problem into a person, with this we lose the basic humanity in the debate.
Which sounds more unacceptable: Inheritance Tax, or Death Tax?
They are the same thing, but we can all agree death tax sounds less agreeable. As humans, we are wired this way. We can be easily swayed by linguistics, and unappealing ideas can be made to sound quite normal, and vice versa. It is also true that we can soften the impact of situations or ideas by the careful choice of words, take the basis of life, water, most of us know H2O means water. What about dihydrogen monoxide? sounds worse somehow right? Yet it is the same thing, the invocation of the words chosen have an impact.
Circumcision and penile mutilation can be used to describe the same action, it just depends on who is using the term and why, as with most things in life: context is everything.
This leads us to our final point:
If the term “mutilation” depends on whether someone has been harmed, why would we ever want to take the risk? Some men have been harmed, unnecessarily. These men are being reasonable when they claim they feel as though the practice has been mutilating, they deserve to be included in the discussion.
They are accurate in using these terms if they feel that they have been damaged. Their stories are valid arguments against the unnecessary genital alteration of men, as they show evidence of the potential for harm.
We fight for the rights of the child. All children deserve intact genitals, as children they cannot consent and we would do better by them all if we gave them the autonomy to understand how their body functions and what they want to happen to it. Parents should be fully informed too, to avoid this diabolic gamble.
Wiktionary
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). “Mutilation” . Encyclopædia Britannica. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 99–100.
It absolutely is mutilation. Just look at the definition itself: “… cutting off a body part… permanently damaged, detached or disfigured…” How can it ever be anything but mutilation?
And the word ‘circumcision’ is just a nice euphemism for Foreskin Amputation, or Genital reduction surgery.
My life was ruined the day a ‘doctor’ amputated my foreskin, without anaesthetic and without my consent. I was 2 days old for God’s sake. For the crime of being born a male, I’ve been punished with a lifetime of reduced sensation, painful, bent erections, torn skin, friction-raw skin, bleeding and unenjoyable sex – for me and my wife. The psychological toll has been enormous, trying to accept the fact that my parents were complicit in signing the butcher’s paper, trying to accept that at the age of 2 (days), my parents chose my future sex life, and that of my future wife – and they chose woefully. My ADHD, autism and memory issues have been linked (by a psychiatrist) to the extreme trauma of my unanaesthatized neonatal cutting, during which I collapsed (aka: ‘he was so calm, he slept through it’).
I dared to speak out about it to my family – now my parents and sister no longer speak to me.
I challenge anyone to stand before me and tell me it’s a harmless little thing and it’s not mutilation – and I’ll kick your arse and set you right pretty damn quick.
We dare to call ourselves civilized – yet we continue to sexually assault our infant boys – when will we ever stop destroying boys’ and men’s lives, FOR NO GOOD REASON?
As far as I can see it :removing a healthy fully functional tissue IS mutilation. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings but people need to be aware and this barbarism has to stop.
Interstingly when it comes to female circumcision regardless of the level of the damage it is always called fgm and it’s always a big drama. When it comes to men it’s “just” circumcision…an eufeminism. This nomenclature just downplays what happens to men in this world “ruled by men”… Even adult males would deserve the very same protection as females enjoy. In those VERY RARE cases when surgical alteration is REALLY unavoidable there should be enough skin tissue left in case the patient wants to restore. They also should be told that certain level of restauration is possible! The reason for the intervention should be very strictly documented and stored with before /after photo evidence and the doctor performing the intervention should be held accountable if they performed any kind of alteration without real indication! There are way too many misled men who didn’t need any surgery and now suffering the consequences.
I can still remember the patient I met when I did my dermatology placement almost 15 years ago. He had latex allergy and the dermatologist told him he should go under the knife… I still don’t understand how that was supposed to cure the patients latex allergy… When the patient left I run after him to give him real information but he just shouted at me that he fully understands the risks and he trusts the dermatologist. Months later when I met him again he was asking me if it could be “undone”…. Men are a lot more voulnerable than they are willing to admit it and they deserve the very same legal protection as women do!
Two decades of public circumcision conversations and still there are experiences such as yours relating the reason for getting cut that are surprising. I think the underlying factor is the social conditioning, meaning brainwashing that’s done over a lifetime treatment of constant, repetitive procirc, and only procirc messages. This clearly overrides critical thinking which stops questioning. The USA’s most common public response: “I never thought about circumcision. I just did it!”
I would never email 15 square an email or anyone else for any reason.
BUT all persons need to be reminded in the most deadly serious way that settles ALL arguments and disagreements about the force removal/cutting of a baby boyS or girls
genItals.
TO say that a baby can/or can not consent is the worst kind of apathy by
100s of thousands humans.FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS
IT IS SO CLEAR THAT NO YOUNG PERSON/BABY WOULD EVER CONSENT TO SUCH THINGS
IT IS CRYSTAL CLEAR THAT THEIR VOICES HAVE BE IGNORED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS
A CHILD HAVING NO WORDS CAN ONLY SCREAM AND SCREAM UNTIL THERE IS NOTHING LEFT SO LOUD WHEN SUCH THINGS ARE DONE
ONLY ONE WHO HAS NO HUMANITY COULD ALLOW THIS THE GREATEST ATROCITY TO CARRY ON
ONLY ONE WHO DOES THIS IN GODS NAME DOES THIS NOT OUT LOVE BUT OUT of WHAT THEY BELIEVE???????
ONLY ONE WHO DOES THIS DOES IN THE NAME OF THE LAW/AND OF BELIEF
WE LIKE TO THING WE ARE civilised
THIS IS WHAT I WOULD CALL LEGAL POTENTIAL MURDER AND RAPE NO COUNTRY ON THIS PLANET HAS BANNED THE PRACTICE
SO I QUESTION WHO ARE WE WHAT ARE WE ARE FIT TO TO BE CALLED HUMAN.
I LEAVE THE READER TO THINK ABOUT WHAT THEY THINK IT IS TO CARE FOR ANOTHER
WOULD YOU HURT THEM PHYSICALLY PERMANENTLY