During my year in Germany, a friend of mine and I researched and presented to our Women's Rights class some basic information on FGM. Though I certainly can't claim to be an expert on the subject, I thought I would share some of the more valuable sources we found for those of you who are interested in learning more.
First, this map shows the areas in Africa where FGM is practiced, and how widely it is practiced in those areas. My understanding is that, while FGM is most widely practiced in Africa, there are areas in Asia and the Middle East where FGM is a prominent practice.
This article, from Africa: The Journal of the International African Institute contains a number of journal entries from a researcher working in Northern Sudan. Though her original research related to the disability of women infected with Schitstosoma Mansoni, she witnessed a number of circumcision ceremonies during her field work, and I think her first person accounts, and her later reflections on those ceremonies can offer us some insights.
Also, the World Health Organization has a lot of good information on the health risks related to FGM that we were discussing in class. I found the 'classification' of the different types of FGM to be particularly helpful in understanding what exactly happens to these girls.
Thanks so much for posting this blog post. Looking at the map and reading the article helped me to answer some questions that I still had after class last Tuesday. This topic is incredibly interesting and very controversial so thank you for helping me to clear up my final thoughts that were left hanging. I know that you said you also made a PowerPoint on this topic, if you still have the PowerPoint I would like to encourage you to put it on the blog as well. I’m sure it would be great to have even more resources on female circumcision or FGM.
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