America Quote by Warren Farrell
![“Were we to still be circumcising the hood of the female clitoris, we would not have difficulty considering this a continuation of our tradition to keep girls sexually repressed. America's reflexive continuation of [male] circumcision-without-research reflects the continuation of our tradition to…” quote by Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/749/warren-farrell-1187_america_were-we-to-still-be-circumcising-the-hoo_255459.jpg)
“Were we to still be circumcising the hood of the female clitoris, we would not have difficulty considering this a continuation of our tradition to keep girls sexually repressed. America's reflexive continuation of [male] circumcision-without-research reflects the continuation of our tradition to desensitize boys to feelings of pain, to prepare them to question the disposability of their bodies no more than they would question the disposability of their foreskins.”
About This Quote
Source Article: The New York Review of Books, 2008
Circumcising females perpetuates a tradition that represses girls, while male circumcision desensitizes boys to pain, reflecting broader cultural control over bodies.
In simple terms: Female and male circumcisions are tools of bodily control and tradition.
Key Takeaway
Question and challenge harmful bodily practices.
Themes
gender
body autonomy
tradition
pain
cultural control
Mood
critical
determined
Type
political
ethical
When to use this quote
- medical ethics debates
- educational curricula
- policy reform
- activist campaigns
Key Concepts
Ethics of bodily modification
power dynamics
health policy
Questions to Reflect On
- How can societies shift harmful traditions?
- What alternatives respect autonomy?
A Different Perspective
Cultural resistance may impede change.
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