Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), a practice primarily known to occur in African and Middle Eastern countries, is being secretly performed within the United States, sparking shock. [Photo=UNICEF]

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a ritual involving the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia of girls aged 4 to 8.

However, it has come to light that this practice, traditionally associated with Africa and the Middle East, is being conducted in secret within the United States, causing widespread shock.

500,000 girls subjected to the procedure in the U.S.

According to 2016 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 500,000 women and girls in the United States are estimated to have undergone FGM. A significant number of these procedures have taken place in Minnesota, where approximately 98% of those affected are reportedly from the Somali community.

A still from the film "Girl and Woman," which covers the topic of Female Genital Mutilation.

The issue is that despite state laws classifying FGM as a felony, there has not been a single criminal prosecution in Minnesota.

In an interview with Fox News, Minnesota Republican State Representative Mary Franson stated, "The people performing the mutilation of female genitals could be family members within a tight-knit community or doctors who share the same culture," adding that "because of their own cultural secrecy, it is very difficult to uncover."

Furthermore, survivors often prefer to keep the matter secret due to feelings of shame and fear.

However, Fox News criticized the state government, stating, "The total lack of prosecutions means that Minnesota agencies have failed to oversee these crimes," and asked, "Isn't the reason residents pay billions of dollars in taxes to eliminate blind spots in welfare and child protection?"

Fox News also quoted critics who concluded that the excuse that "investigators are reluctant to deeply probe culturally sensitive issues" is merely a way to allow large-scale illegal activities to go unchecked.

"No tradition can justify torture"

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali-born activist and author who is herself a victim of FGM, founded the AHA Foundation to end the practice.

Hirsi Ali works to inform parents of the dangers of FGM to young girls while also holding the state legally accountable. [Photo=AHA Foundation]

She argued, "FGM causes deep physical and emotional scars that never heal," adding, "Religious or cultural practices that harm children must be eradicated. No tradition can justify torture."

Hirsi Ali works to inform parents about the dangers of FGM to young girls while simultaneously pushing for legal accountability from the state.

Zahra Abdalla, a Somali-born FGM survivor, revealed in an interview with Fox News that the practice is sustained by family pressure and silence.

She confessed that she was subjected to the procedure in a Kenyan refugee camp between the ages of 6 and 7, using a razor blade without anesthesia, describing the pain as "enough to make you faint."

Fortunately, Abdalla said she was able to kick one of the women performing the procedure, forcing them to stop before the cutting was fully completed.

However, she revealed that the procedure resulted in the need for follow-up surgeries, extreme difficulty with sexual intercourse, and multiple miscarriages.

Medical experts state that the procedure can lead to chronic pain, severe bleeding, infection, incontinence, sexual dysfunction, childbirth complications, and, in some cases, death.

Because FGM permanently alters genital tissue, it is impossible to reverse. Consequently, survivors often require repeated medical treatment and must live with persistent psychological trauma.

Turning a blind eye to human rights abuses to avoid being labeled racist

According to the World Health Organization, FGM is practiced in 28 countries across Africa and the Middle East, with Somalia having the highest rate, where a staggering 98% of all women have undergone the procedure.

Tools used in female genital mutilation. [AFP=Fox News]

Abdalla added that the practice is deeply linked to marriage, noting that in some regions, men are reluctant to marry women who have not undergone the procedure. In other words, because a daughter not getting married means no dowry, FGM is seen as making a significant financial contribution to a household.

At the federal level, FGM was outlawed in 1996, and in 2018, then-President Donald Trump signed legislation that expanded federal jurisdiction over the practice.

However, in 2018, a federal court ruled the provision unconstitutional, stating, "The federal government does not have the authority to punish this matter; it is a decision to be made by each state."

This led to the dismissal of prosecutions, and it was not until the "STOP FGM Act" was passed in 2021 that the legal basis for federal punishment was strengthened once again.

Nevertheless, cases prosecuted under this law remain extremely rare across the United States.

In Minnesota, which has treated FGM as a felony since 1994, there is not a single record of a criminal prosecution. Why has the law existed but not been enforced or utilized for prosecution? The reason is absurd.

A bill to establish an "FGM Prevention Task Force" was proposed in Minnesota this legislative session. The primary sponsor is Representative Hodan Hassan (a Somali-American Democrat), along with other Somali-American and Republican lawmakers.

Republican Representative Franson stated, "I was also a primary sponsor, but the Democratic Party does not support this bill at the party level because they believe those who propose it are racists."

In short, the moment one calls for a ban on FGM, they are labeled a racist who is demonizing all Somali people as child or female abusers. This is a perfect example of the proverb, "Don't avoid making soy sauce for fear of maggots."

The reality that children are being left to suffer death, shame, and pain in an effort to avoid appearing discriminatory toward Somali people—is there any situation more tragic and ironic than this?

Reporter Im Yo-hee