Documentary 'A Pinch of Skin' highlights FGC in India

voice of questioning dissent. Watch the film’s trailer here and follow the Facebook page for updates on the film and stories on FGC from around the globe.

All countries, NOW, required to track FGC for U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

For far too long, FGC has been misunderstood and misrepresented as only an “African” problem. Indeed, we hear terrifying stories about the practice of FGC and the horrific physical and mental consequences on women and girls from those countries. Yet,...

Cafe Dissensus runs a special issue on female circumcision in the Bohra community

Guest-edited by Australian author Rashida Murphy, the FGC-special issue features fifteen essays and deeply personal stories by survivors of khatna and women who are driving the movement against the practice in the Bohra community. In her editorial,...

Why I feel Sahiyo’s Activist Retreat is a sacred space

experiences of what it means to be Bohra. That sense of community, that inspiration that came from hearing everyone’s stories, and that deep desire to want to make change happen for the better. I had experienced it at the first Sahiyo Retreat and was...

Sahiyo U.S. Advisory Board Spotlight: Joanne Golden

legislation with over 300,000 signatures. I have admired her efforts to give a voice to girls and women through the Sahiyo Stories project. I also became a member of the Sahiyo U.S. Advisory board last year, and participated in our successful Boston...

I was impressed with the courage of young women at Sahiyo's Activist Retreat

these girls knew exactly what had happened to them and were so aware of its consequences and so vocal about sharing their stories and being against it. That was a big insight for me. Perhaps this generational change could be because of social media;...

What can Bohras learn from a new report on the global status of female genital cutting?

I wonder if I would have been a different person if I hadn't been cut

it too. I learned that it was called circumcision when I was studying anthropology in college. I read about horrible stories that women in Africa went through. I am thankful that, unlike other friends who were taken to some lady’s dingy house, I was...

Sahiyo participates in the End Violence Against Girls Summit on FGM/C

The story of my start to the holy month of Ramzan

many women went through after they were cut. This backlash is exactly what prevents survivors of any trauma to share their stories. The pain endured may or may not have been the same for all, but the shame which they are being put through for speaking...

Khatna: A mother’s pain and a son's search for retribution

from the tears buildingup in her eyes. I couldn’t hold back the tears in my own. The anger I felt when reading the stories of other women, rose to a fever pitch when I realized how much it hurt the woman that brought me into this world. A woman I have...

Why doctors need to speak out against female genital cutting in India

But in the past five years, with the silence around this tradition gradually breaking, we have heard innumerable stories of women who have been physically, psychologically and sexually scarred by their circumcisions in a variety of ways. Some women bled...

The unsolved riddle: conversations with survivors (Part 2)

journalist based in Pakistan, driven by the ambition of tackling difficult, often untouched topics. Her focus is on stories related to human rights, health and gender.)

A tale of deception: My conversation with an FGC survivor in Pakistan

journalist based in Pakistan, driven by the ambition of tackling difficult, often untouched topics. Her focus is on stories related to human rights, health and gender.)

A conversation with change makers: women who chose to speak up about Khatna

a definite conclusion. It was fascinating to observe that although each woman had an individual experience of Khatna, their stories were eerily similar and the trajectory of growing up and figuring out the significance of it was uncannily alike. A lot...

On The Supreme Court Hearings and The Pro-Khatna FAQs Circulated by Bohras

Mutilation (FGM), and that khatna does notcause any physical harm, trauma or even pain. This claim ignores all the personal stories of women who have said that it caused harm, long-lasting trauma, and terrible pain to them (including myself). The...

Not all damages are physical. Not everyone religious is morally ethical

most of our teachings. All the more reason why I am grateful to Sahiyo for this amazing platform for women to share their stories, to empathise, to let girls like me know that I am not the only damaged one and that I don’t need to see myself as a...

Let there be no more victims like me

I wondered whether what happened to me was a mere unfortunate mistake by this doctor. I have since then come across stories of others in Sri Lanka who were cut by the same and other doctors who share similar tales. So no, I was not an unfortunate...

Examining Female Genital Cutting and Intersectionality

the work done by organisations such as Sahiyo is vital. By reaching out to individuals, and creating a space to share our stories, Sahiyo creates sustainable change within the community, and rebalances the power structures that exist within.

The Legal Side of Khatna or Female Genital Cutting

petition was filed against it anonymously. The online campaign triggered a barrage of women coming forward with their own stories of trauma caused by khatna. It further fueled both online petitions as well as an onground movement. Within the Indian...