Stop Male Genital Mutilation
On the 30th of October 2013 Men Do Complain handed in, to 10 Downing Street, a physical petition to deliver the message that men are no longer silent on the subject of circumcision. We want equal protection.
We call on the government to amend the Female Genital Mutilation legislation
to protect children with atypical genitals and males from non-therapeutic
genital modification.
Our third year of protesting outside the British Medical Association’s Annual Representative’s Meeting has shown a marked shift in the manner of our reception. The doctors who ignored us did just that, ignored us.
The doctors who support our stance on the breach of ethics that non-therapeutic circumcision represents are now much more friendly. Watch the video and look out for smiles, petition signing and a delightful high five!
Also in the video MDC supporter Alison Waugh came to show her support and gave us a stunning interview.
MDC took to the pedestrianised centre of Cambridge to state our case against the non-therapeutic genital modification of children. Our message fell on receptive ears. We have now collected over ninety signatures, distributed between fifty and a hundred leaflets and presented our case to passers by who stopped to talk. We met an intact Jewish man whose parents a generation ago had abandoned circumcision, needless to say if he has sons there will be a bloodless naming ceremony, Brit Shalom, rather than a Bronze Age blood rite.
A Humanist approached us and said he would download the petition form and start collecting signatures from among the group of Humanists to which he belongs. A Sociologist asked about involvement in the movement with a view to doing some work on the subject. We gladly provided information. Many of our conversations were with people who were quite shocked to find out about the current situation in the U.K. regarding medical ethics, the inherent unfairness of the differing treatment of children simply because of gender and the unnecessary operations on children with atypical genitals.
Men Do Complain will be visiting cities and towns around the U.K. in the next few months so if you would like to get involved get in touch with us and we’ll do our best to pay a visit to your area.
Thanks to all those who attended, talked to us, took photos, hooted support, took videos, kept us in order, fed and watered us.
Join Men Do Complain for a vigil outside the German Embassy to mark the anniversary of the Cologne Ruling concerning the circumcision of a small boy. The Court in Cologne decided that;
“There was no consent by the child, who was four years old at the time, and since the child was not old enough to understand the situation, there was no question of such consent being given. There was consent by the parents, but this was not capable of justifying the commission of the elements of bodily harm.”
Sadly the cutting of children’s genitals continues despite this enlightened ruling.
We will be standing from 10:00 to 16:00. The address is 23 Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8PZ.
The message is “Children’s rights not parents’ rites”. T-shirts and placards will be available on the day. There will also be an opportunity to engage the public and encourage them to sign our petition for the law that protects females from genital cutting to be made gender neutral.