Female genital mutilation, also known as female circumcision, is a barbaric practice commonly found in Africa, Asia, and several countries in the Middle East. It is the cutting of the clitoris, removal of some or all of the labia minora, or stitching shut of the labia majora. This is conducted to control the woman, to keep her from being sexually promiscuous, to prepare her for marriage, and for religious purposes.

Many who preform and even receive these acts see nothing wrong with the practice. However, this procedure is extremely invasive, controlling, and often deadly, as well as a massive violation of human rights.

10The Health Risks Are Severe And Often Deadly

There are zero health benefits from female genital mutilation, only health risks that are often deadly. Some of the immediate results of female genital mutilation are severe pain, excessive bleeding, the swelling of the genital tissue, fever, infections, tearing of the genital area, problems with urination, inability for the tissue to properly heal, injury to the surrounding genital tissue, and in severe cases shock and death.

There are also long-term consequences of this act, if the woman is able to make it through the immediate complications, such as urinary problems (including urinary tract infections and painful urination), vaginal problems (including discharge, itching, and bacterial vaginosis), scar tissue problems, extreme pain and even tearing during intercourse, difficulty with intercourse, tearing during childbirth, the need to resuscitate the child after birth, and infant death. Furthermore, there are psychological problems that may follow female genital mutilation such as depression, low self-worth, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, sexual dysfunctions, difficulty becoming aroused, sexual dysfunction due to trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, other stress disorders, and many other complications.

9Newborns To Young Adults Are Most Affected

The most common age of a young woman undergoing female genital mutilation is 7–10 years old, but it occurs to children of a much younger age in several countries. Many women who have been put through the process have it done to their children due to social pressure and the inability to recognize the negative impact of the practice. It is stated that it’s done at such a young age to “reduce the trauma to the children.”

Many girls 14 or older who have not undergone female genital mutilation may still be at risk. Women who have daughters will often find themselves conforming to the social pressures to have their daughters cut to find a husband, even if the mother is against the practice and has not had the procedure herself. Many young adults may also find themselves undergoing the procedure in their late teens to be able to find a husband, as many husbands in these countries are more attracted to those who do have this done.

8There Are Four Types

Type 1 is clitoridectomy. This consists of the removal of the clitoral hood and the partial or full removal of the clitoris.

Type 2 is an excision. This is where the clitoris and labia minora are partially or even fully removed. This may or may not come with the excision of the labia majora.

Type 3 is the most severe. This is referred to as infibulation or pharaonic type. This consists of narrowing the vaginal orifice by creating a seal to cover the vaginal opening by cutting and arranging the labia minora and/or the labia majoria. This may or may not include the removal of the clitoris. The process of repositioning consists of stitching the cut areas together for a set amount of time, usually done by binding the girl’s legs together to allow scar tissue to build up and close the wound, creating a seal. This is only opened due to penetrative sexual intercourse, through surgery, or through tearing during childbirth following intercourse.

Type 4 is a general classification for all other types of female genital mutilation for non-medical purposes. This may include pricking, piercing, incisions, scraping, and cauterization. There are also a variety of less widely practiced form of female genital mutilation, including those done to aboriginal women in Australia by use of a certain kind of string, mentioned later in the list.

7There Are Cases In The United States

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted a study in response to the advocacy of Equality Now and Same Hands for Girls in January 2016. This study found that an estimated 513,000 girls and women had undergone or been at risk of being subjected to female genital mutilation.

In addition, a study by the Population Reference Bureau conducted in February 2015 estimated that 507,000 girls and women living in the US are at risk of or have been subjected to female genital mutilation. This just proves that we need more information about the prevalence of female genital mutilation in the United States.

Although female genital mutilation has been a federal crime since 1996, there are no specific laws against them in the following states: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wyoming.

6Countries Are Trying To Get FGM Medicalized

In many countries where female genital mutilation is commonly practiced, a growing number of health care providers perform FGM, as well as supporting the medicalization of it. This would mean that it would become even more common and would be acknowledged as a beneficial medical practice. However, we know that it offers no benefits to the woman.

Many countries practice this through their religion. This is seen often in Muslim counties, where it is claimed that the Quran explicitly refers to female genital mutilation. However, Cairo’s Al-Azhar University condemned this, stating that it was a form of deceit to misguide people who hear this was a practice of the Islamic state.

5A Variety Of Tools Are Used

The tools used in the procedures of female genital mutilation are not always clean, and usually, the doctors conducting the procedure are not well trained. Dirty scalpels, pieces of glass, razors, small knives, and even sharpened sticks are used in these processes.

Often, opossum string is used, made of opossum hair strands. We see this in cases of FGM in the Pitta-Patta tribe in Australian aboriginals. When a girl reaches puberty, the entire tribe gathers, and an elderly man conducts the procedure. He first enlarges the vaginal orifice by tearing downward with his fingers bound in opossum string. Often following is the compulsory intercourse with several men.

4There Are Severe Sexual Consequences

Women who have undergone female genital mutilation often have a harder time having an orgasm, they have a less active sex drive, and often feel that they are not able to sexually please their partners. It is also more difficult for their vagina to self-lubricate during sex, which often leads to tearing and painful intercourse. Not only that—childbirth can cause the closed opening to tear, causing hemorrhaging, tearing even of the surrounding area, and even death to the child.

3There Are Also Severe Psychological Consequences

There are a multitude of psychological health consequences for a woman who undergoes female genital mutilation. She may develop post-traumatic stress disorder, other related stress disorders, depression, personality disorders, and a low sense of self-worth.

Data from a study conducted in 2010, of women in Northern Iraq who underwent female genital mutilation, demonstrates this. 45.6 percent or the women experienced some form of an anxiety disorder, and 13.9 percent were shown to be suffering from some type of personality disorder.

2Female Genital Mutilation Is A Massive Violation Of Human Rights

This seems like a fairly obvious statement, but many people in the countries that practice female genital mutilation feel otherwise. Meanwhile, the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and the Human Rights Committee have all been actively working to fight against it, condemning the practice altogether.

The practice has been identified as torture and cruel and inhumane treatment of women and girls, and violating the covenant on civil and political rights as well as covenant on economic, cultural, and social rights of women. It also violates a convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), a convention on the rights of the child, and a convention relating to the status of refugees and its protocol relating to the status of refugees.

In regard to children undergoing female genital mutilation, it is a permanent and potentially life-changing operation that cannot be called informed or free of coercion. Because of the vulnerability of the child and their need for care and support, human rights laws grant them special protections through The Convention on the Rights of the Child.

1Numerous Human Rights Campaigns Fight To End Female Genital Mutilation

There are difficulties when it comes to stopping female genital mutilation. However, numerous human rights campaigns work to educate people about the negative effects of female genital mutilation, to create an understanding of the impact it is having. Some of these sites include End FGM European Network, Equality Now, Network Against Female Genital Mutilation, and The Orchid Project to name a few.

With knowledge comes power. If we educate ourselves on the issues that negativity impact these women and spread the message, we can help to free these women and put a stop to the practice altogether.

Eli is passionate about discussing controversial issues and starting a dialogue till every person in the debate has their opinion heard. His life-long goal is to become a well-established author and make a difference in the world, as cheesy as it may sound.

Most everyone can agree that LGBTQ+ people have faced persecution but this is often thought of as a relic of the past but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Even today with the progress we’ve made injustices still occur. In the U.S. gay people can be refused service or fired from their job for their sexual orientation in several states and there are still countries were being gay is punishable by death. Not to mention the severe mistreatment of transgender people that is so unfortunately common. It’s always important to have a reminder to how bad things can get because progress isn’t a linear line and society can regress. This isn’t a prefect list but hopefully it gets the point across.

SEE ALSO: 10 Crazy Attempts To Create A Real-Life Gaydar

10 Maxim Lapunov

It is fairly well known that Russia does not treat gay people well, especially predominantly Islamic Chechnya but it one thing to hear general statements; hearing testimony from the victims themselves is quite another. Maxim Lapunov was one such victim of Chechnya’s attack on LGBT people. Maxim was kidnapped in the street in Grozny, the capital of Chechnya. He was held for twelve days and beaten severely with batons.

Maxim Lapunov is not the only one to be victimized by the Chechnya officials: hundreds of gay people are being imprisoned and abused; subjected to beatings and electric shocks. Maxim has brought his accusations to Russia’s investigative committee, but so far nothing has come of this.^[1]

9 Stonewall

In the 1960s, gay clubs were frequently subject to raids by the police, because sodomy was illegal (and still is in some states). Stonewall Inn was no different. On June 28, 1969 Stonewall Inn was raided by the police and this lead to six days of rioting. It seemed to all start when a woman being shoved into the police car yelled “Why don’t you guys do something!” A crowd had already started to gather at that point and that this was the tipping point.

Other gay bars in the area had also been raided like the Sewer and the Snake Pit, but what made Stonewall Inn so special and important was that it was a place for everyone. Young gay people who had been thrown out of their homes could panhandle and get the three dollars for the entrance fee and have a place to stay the night. It was also one of the few places welcome to drag queens, who were not always welcome even in gay clubs.^[2]

8 UpStairs Lounge Arson Attack

The UpStairs Lounge arson attack happened in New Orleans in June 24, 1973. It resulted in the deaths of 32 people; either by the fire itself or smoke inhalation. The UpStairs Lounge as you may have guessed was a gay bar and the arson attack was the deadliest attack on the gay community in the U.S. before the Orlando Nightclub shooting. Someone doused the staircase with lighter fluid and set it ablaze. This also blocked the escape route. Some people tried to escape out the windows but they were covered by burgler bars. Reverend Bill Larson got stuck in the window and burned to death. 29 people died in the lounge while the last 3 died of their injuries later.

The then chief detective of the New Orleans Police Department stated “Some thieves hung out there, and you know this was a queer bar.” Most other government officials simply ignored the attack all together. The arsonist was never caught and 3 of the victims were never identified.^[3]

7 Uganda

Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda. It was first criminalized after the British occupation; but this is believed to have been worsened by the rise in Evangelical Christians traveling to Uganda to proselytize their religion. In 2009 when the Ugandan government was proposing the death penalty for homosexuality this was cheered on by Conservative Evangelicals like Andrew Wommack. Kipya Kaoma, a Zambian clergyman stated “But nobody was ever arrested or prosecuted based on those old laws. People turned a blind eye to it. Homosexuality was not a political issue.”

In 2010 a local tabloid called the Rolling Stone Uganda published the names and addresses of 100 LGBTQ+ people living in Uganda beneath the headline “Hang Them.” Several people on that list were murdered including prominent LGBT rights activist David Kato and many people on the list lost their jobs and their homes. Gay people are being forced to leave Uganda because it is simply too dangerous for them to stay.^[4]

6 Alan Turing

Alan Turing was a mathematician, computer scientist, and cryptanalysis. He was instrumental during World War 2 because he helped decrypt enemy ciphers for the allies. He developed a machine called the ‘Bombe’ which was able to break the ciphers created by the German’s Enigma machine.

Alan Turing was also a gay man and would be subjected to cruel treatment by the very government he helped for it. When he was discovered to be gay in 1952, he was arrested, charged and convicted of obscenity, and chemically castrated. He was also no longer able to work for the government and lost his security clearance. He was harassed by police surveillance. In 1954 he died of cyanide poisoning. It was deemed a suicide but it is also possible that he accidentally ingested cyanide during an amateur chemistry experiment.

Alan Turing was posthumous pardoned, formally cancelling his criminal conviction in December 2013.^[5]

5 Iran

Iran is a country where homosexuality is not only illegal but punishable by death. Homosexuality was criminalized and made punishable by the death penalty in 1979 after the Islamic Revolution. In 2007 the President of Iran upheld this stating “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals, like in your country.” The current President of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, has persecuted homosexuals just the same as his predecessors. Just this year a man accused of homosexuality was executed in Iran while Europe and the UN turned a blind eye. The frequency and public nature of Iranian executions is eerily reflected in various scenes of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. Pictured above are 16 and 18 year old Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni being executed publicly in 2005 for allegedly raping a 13 year old boy.^[6]

4 Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde was a novelist, playwright, and poet. He lived in Ireland for most of his life and was born in Dublin on 16 October 1854. He was also gay. Oscar Wilde is just one example of how gay men were treated in the 1800s. Similarly to Alan Turning, he was treated like a criminal. Wilde was married to a woman named Constance Lloyd in 1884 and they had two sons but Wilde would have affairs with men throughout their marriage.

He began an affair with Lord Alfred Douglas in 1891. His lover’s father the Marquis of Queensberry accused Oscar Wilde of being a homosexual and Wilde sued him for libel. Wilde lost and the results were devastating. The details of his private life where revealed. He was outed, arrested and tried for gross indecency. He was sentenced to two years of hard labor. When Wilde was released his wife had already left him and taken their children and his reputation was ruined. He died of acute meningitis brought on by an ear infection in Paris on 30 November 1900 at the age of 46.^[7]

3 Brazil

Brazil has never been a great place for gay people but under Bolsonaro things are looking to get even worse. Bolsonaro is an extremely conservative politician who publicly said “Yes, I’m homophobic – and very proud of it.” Bolsonaro was against Brazil’s decision in 2013 to allow gay people to marry, calling it “a blow to family unity and family values.” During an interview with Stephen Fry, Bolsonaro claimed that homosexual fundamentalists were brainwashing heterosexual children to become gays and lesbians to satisfy them sexually in the future. He also told Fry “Brazilian society doesn’t like homosexuals.”

Bolsonaro reportedly told journalists in Brasília “If you want to come here and have sex with a woman, go for your life, but we can’t let this place become known as a gay tourism paradise. Brazil can’t be a country of the gay world, of gay tourism. We have families.” He has also stated that he would prefer a dead son to a gay son.

Around 141 gay people have been killed in Brazil this year and 420 the year before, according to rights group Grupo Gay da Bahia. Brazil’s only openly gay politician Jean Wyllys had to flee the country after receiving numerous death threats after Bolonaro was elected.^[8]

2 Russia’s “homosexual propaganda” laws

As stated previously Russia is not a great place for gay people and this was by no means an exaggeration. In 2013 Russia systematically passed a law banning “homosexual propaganda“. This law states that promoting “homosexual behavior among minors” face fines of up to 5,000 roubles (£67; $85), while officials risk paying 10 times that amount. Businesses and schools can be fined up to 500,000 roubles. This puts gay people with families at risk as one gay activist in Russia named Masha Gessen stated “I contacted an adoption lawyer asking whether I had reason to worry that social services would go after my family and attempt to remove my oldest son, whom I adopted in 2000. The lawyer wrote back telling me to instruct my son to run if he is approached by strangers and concluding: “The answer to your question is at the airport.”

Many gay activists have protested this law and have been viciously attacked only to be arrested later by the same police officers who watched them being attacked. The law was later deemed discriminatory by the Council of Europe and Russia was ordered to pay damages totaling €43,000 plus costs and interest within three months.^[9]

1 Gay Victims of the Holocaust

The LGBT victims of the holocaust are often the first to be forgotten and this is entirely on purpose. Under the Third Reich, approximately 100,000 men were arrested for homosexuality, of which around 5,000-15,000 were sent to concentration camps. When the Allies were liberating these camps for the gay people in them this only meant being moved from one cell to another as homosexuality was still illegal in Germany.

Pierre Seel was one victim’s story that we know of. He was a gay man in France in 1941 when France was invaded by Germany and he was seized by the Gestapo. He was then sent to the Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp. From the moment of his arrest he was tortured, he was sodomized with a wooden stick, and then forced to watch his friend being murdered by a pack of dogs. In the 1980s when Seel started speaking publicly about his experiences he was met with yet more hostility. Catherine Trautmann a French politician even refused to shake his hand at a commemorative event.^[10]