ANTH 331 Study Guide - Final Guide: Female Genital Mutilation, Infibulation, World Health Organization
21 Apr 2016
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They vary in the type of cutting and the age that it is performed at. Part of the rite of passage into marriagable womanhood (maasai) Defines gender identity; consider certain parts to be male (cameroon) 88% of girls and women have undergone fgc. Not a function of lack of education, wealth, or urban vs. rural residence. Scar tissue can impede urination, blockage of vagina and retention of menstrual blood. Women are vulnerable to sexually aggressive men and need to be protected. Women have little control over their sexual desires. Transform a girl or woman into a sudanese virgin, and therefore marriageable. Festive ceremony, one of the few times that she will receive gifts. 42% girls and women support continuation of the practice. 27% of boys and men support continuing infibulation. Midwifery was one of the few status-bearing roles a woman could achieve in sudan. A woman has nothing without marriage, no status, no money.
