Say no to circumcision - support intactivism. The following list includes blogs, articles, and websites of interest to Intactivists that were published in the past week. This is a running tally of the ones I found interesting.

I post these mini-reviews of the past week's intactivist posts in order to let others have a single place to find good information. I also do it to help the search engines, like Google, index these pages so that others can find them when searching for circumcision related topics.

The newly revised Policy Statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) "Ritual Genital Cutting of Female Minors" continues to be news. The policy advocates for allowing female genital "nicking." It also renames female genital mutilation (FGM) to female genital cutting (FGC) because the word "cutting" is less threatening.
 

Monday, May 17, 2010

The Gender Equality Movement: Is Feminism Really For Gender Equality?
A look at feminism and its approach, in general, on genital mutilation of children: it is one sided against female genital mutilation and ignores male circumcision.

The Skeptical Teacher: AAP Follow Up Statement on Female Genital Cutting
The American Academy of Pediatricians issues a follow up statement that does not take back their extraordinary change of heart to promote a form of female genital mutilation.
 

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The Zimbabwean: Russian roulette
An insightful article pointing out that male circumcision will not have the desired effect of reducing HIV in Africa. "Encouraging circumcision is merely dabbling ineffectively with the symptoms of the problem rather than its cause. The root problem causing the rapid spread of HIV in African countries is people's mindsets and attitudes towards sex."
 

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Metcalf-isms: An Informed Decision
A mother plans on writing her son a letter apologizing for having him circumcised as an infant. She has become informed and realizes that she had no right to remove part of her son's body at birth.

Le Petit Owlet: Circumcision Kills
A mother rants about male infant circumcision. She does not understand how parents can do such a dastardly thing as circumcision of their son's sex organ.

DrMomma Peaceful Parenting: I Circumcised My Son: Healing From Regret
A letter from a mother who deeply regrets allowing her first son to be circumcised as an infant. She left her second son intact.

The Daily Beast: Why Are American Doctors Mutilating Girls?
Ayaan Hirsi Ali, author of Nomad: From Islam to America, A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations, writes about the new AAP policy statement. The activist soundly condemns any form of female genital mutilation.
 

Friday, May 21, 2010

OECD Insights:  AIDS, abstinence and circumcision
History repeats itself as male circumcison is promoted as the solution to HIV, much as it was a hundred years ago for other STDs. The real answer to HIV is public education that reduces risky behavior and funding of HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy). Such a program is known to work. Circumcision does not.

The Stir: Female Genital Mutilation and Circumcision: Comparable?
The author states that the "primary differences between cutting the genitals of a girl and a boy is the prevailing attitude behind the practices. Male circumcision is a religious ritual for some, and a matter of social convention for others. FGM/C is also a religious ritual for some and a social convention for others." Unfortunately, this statement is made through the glasses of US culture. It downplays that both male and female genital cutting have similar roots: sexual oppression. The author makes some valid points, but the members of the site are very hostile to outsiders, particularly male outsiders.

Male Circumcision and HIV: Foregen spearheads new effort to conduct clinical trials in cellular regeneration to benefit circumcised adult men
A new non-profit formed in Italy is promoting clinical trials to explore rengenerating a foreskin removed by circumcision. The post includes a video interview with Ron Low, who is behind the TLC Tugger device.
 

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Woman to Woman Childbirth Education: The Vulnerability of Men
A mother discusses the article The Vulnerability of Men, which explains why some men insist on circumcision for their sons. The author says that women need to learn to communicate with men to reach them.

The Sydney Morning Hereld: Support for female circumcision stirs controversy in US
An Australian newspaper writes about the American Academy of Pediatrics AAP Policy Statement advocating a form of female genital mutilation. Among the AAPs critics are many US medical practitioners. ''Have you all gone nuts?'' one paediatrican demanded of the academy's bio-ethics committee in a website exchange. ''Just a little female circumcision? There's no reason to do this procedure and to condone any form of it is not acceptable.''