Even without Bill Heath et al's additions to the anti-FGM bill, it's still a pretty messed up bill that I don't support… It's still a repressive anti-woman bill that shouldn't be passed as is. The part that gets me is the start of the second section, defining the criminal as,
Any person:
(1) Who knowingly circumcises, excises, pierces, or infibulates, in whole or in part, the labia majora, labia minora, or clitoris of a female;
...
(c) This Code section shall not apply to procedures performed ... when necessary to preserve the physical health of the female or during or after labor or childbirth for medical reasons connected with the labor or childbirth.
So to be clear, this bill even its original form takes away women's right to their bodies. It says that even adult women have no right to have corrective genital surgery (more, more, more — links to a local plastic surgeon) unless it's being done for the purposes of childbirth. Men of course are still allowed to have genital enhancement surgery in Georgia, and male circumcisions are also legal of course.
I have no problem with a law that says you can't cut up your kid's genitals. But I have a big problem with a law that effectively says the government owns the genitals of the adult citizens, rather than the people themselves owning them. If you call your Senator, consider asking them to be clear that this is a law that applies to minors only. This law is wrong, in both flavors its been presented in.
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