In the United States, male circumcision is seen as normal, desirable and expected. In different countries, however, circumcising babies is not a common practice, and is seen a more invasive procedure. 

Female circumcision, also known as female genital mutilation, or simply, “cutting,” is when part or all of the external area of a woman’s genitals are sewn up or removed. 

There is no medical reasoning behind this procedure. However, according to Women’s Health, 140 million females alive have endured this practice. 

The history behind male and female circumcision is a long and complicated one. Male circumcision was first recorded in Eastern Africa, as a way to “purify” young boys by removing part of their sexual organs, hoping that this will stop them from having intercourse or any form of pleasure, according to CIRP. 

Jewish people used circumcision as a religious practice, which continues to be a norm today. Female mutilation began around the same time, and was performed by untrained doctors, even mothers, to remove the labia and clitoris of a young girl for hygiene reasons, and because many believed doing so would give more pleasure to a man. Many women who were not cut were not allowed to be married until they went through the procedure. 

Male circumcision in developed countries is a safe and quick event that occurs typically right after birth with few complications. Female circumcision is illegal in the United States, though is relevant in many other countries that most likely belong to the third world. 

The procedure is done when the child reaches age 11 or 12, performed with no anesthetic, and can cause severe complications. Pain during sex, infections, a damaged urinary tract and pregnancy issues are just some of the horrific side effects of this procedure. 

One woman featured in a BuzzFeed video titled “How I Survived Female Genital Mutilation” described the procedure performed on her when she was 13. 

She was called “three legs” by her peers at school, since she still had a clitoris intact. When she was cut, she could not walk for months, had to leave her legs tied together, and faced many infections and painful complications. 

Male genital mutilation is far from being seen as torturous by the general American public. According to NoCirc, an anti-circumcision group based in Michigan, states, “Male circumcision is a barbaric practice driven by the same reasons as female genital mutilation: cleanliness, tradition, religion, and pseudoscience.” 

Many are so used to the practice that it is normal to request to have your child circumcised. Even though it is performed in a safe environment at a young age for boys, these babies still feel the procedure, and they are not making their own decision whether to be cut or not. Though female genital mutilation is a more invasive and painful procedure with more complications, the practice is still based on the same ideologies. 

No matter the age, gender, religion or origins of a child, they are not giving consent to have their genitals mutilated at such a young age. Therefore, it is not the parents’ right to make that choice for them and poses a horrible violation of one’s rights. 

Regardless of who this child is, they are capable of cleaning themselves properly, and do not deserve to endure the extreme pain of circumcision, even if they are just a baby. In 2018, removing parts of one’s genitals so a child can grow up and not enjoy intercourse as much as they deserve is infringing on their rights as a human. 

If one chooses to go through the medical procedure at 18, that is their own choice. Though it is a tradition to many, sometimes, traditions become outdated, and are meant to be changed. 

Young children should not be put through this pain for hygienic, aesthetic, or religious reasons. It is their body, and not their parents’.