I’ll say this flat out–anybody who blushes easily, stop at the two dots: I have several circumcised women friends, and every one of them hates and fears sex. Which I suppose is great when you’re trying to keep an unmarried virgin in line, but it will also destroy a marriage. I’ve watched it happen. If it wasn’t so tragic, there would be great poetic irony in the fact that FGM erodes the very institution it was meant to protect.

Pain? Permanent deformation of the body? A procedure carried out on a minor? Part of religious or cultural traditions with a long history?

(Note my argument is not against male circumcision. I am interested in peoples views on why we tolerate one and not the other.)

If theres a corresponding, relatively benign analogue to circumcision for females

let me note that i am unaware of such an analogous procedure, incidentally. and if its out there, dont tell me, please.

in general for any religious practice we could hypothesize that there’s a spectrum, ranging from casual to extreme. The casual practice is what is subject to internal debate on compulsory vs not, tradition vs innovation, etc. However that range of practice gets compressed towards the extreme end, invariably, when it comes to light, because its the extreme end that is actually attention-worthy (muslims prayed at a local mosque peacefully and went hom. film at 11.)