I was spared from khatna because my Dadi happened to pass away
by Anonymous Age: 34 Country: India I came to know about the practice when I was seven years old, but all I knew was that khatna means removing something from your body. My two elder sisters have undergone khatna, but I was not cut. The reason for this is that my dadi (grandmother) passed away […]
I don’t remember my khatna. But it feels like a violation
(First published on February 23, 2016) Zehra Patwa Age: 45 Country: United States In 2014, I saw a video that changed my life. My husband sat me down, told me that this was going to be upsetting, and showed me a video. It was a documentary from Australia featuring my cousin’s wife recounting her experience […]
I was cut, my daughter too, but it stops with my granddaughter
Age: 58 Country: India I was 7 years old when my grandmother told me that she is taking me out. I was so happy and dressed up quickly, expecting to be given some goodies. Instead, I was taken to the house of a strange lady who frightened me when she pinned me down. And after […]
Why this Bohra father is guilty about his daughter’s Khatna
(First published on May 5, 2016) Name: Yusuf Country: India The fatwa given during the Zikra majlis by Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin in favor of female genital cutting dug up the wound that exists in my heart which makes me write this post. Looking at parts from the audio clip leaked from the majlis, at one […]
Of tattoos, female circumcision and hypocrisy
by Azra Adenwala Age: 21 Country: United States / India (Read the Hindi translation of this article here.) I never truly thought about my khatna (circumcision) until a while ago when I came across the organization Sahiyo. To be honest, I had no idea what it meant in the first place. It was when I […]
Announcing 16 Days of Activism with Sahiyo: Join the campaign!
Around the world, one out of every three women experiences some form of gender-based violence. And every year, the United Nations runs an international campaign to bring attention –and funds – to this universal cause. The campaign is called ’16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence’ and takes place between November 25 and December 10. Why these […]
Sahiyo Volunteer Spotlight: Chandni Shiyal
Sahiyo is an organization with the mission to empower Asian communities to end female genital cutting through community collaboration, and this work could not be done without dedicated volunteers supporting us. To show our appreciation, we would like to spotlight those volunteers who have made invaluable contributions to this organisation.Chandni Shiyal, a Ph.D. scholar in Mumbai, has […]
‘I begged my mother not to circumcise me. She listened to me.’
By Anonymous Age: 26 Country: United States (Read the Hindi translation of this article here.) I remember hearing about it for the first time in my Saturday school class. A male teacher was taking our class that Saturday morning, and the topic was circumcision. At the ripe age of 14, I didn’t really know what that meant, but […]
I deeply resented what was done to my most intimate parts without my permission
Age: 64 Country: United States (Read the Hindi translation of this article here.) It’s time to take a stand against Female Genital Mutilation. It’s long overdue. It wasn’t right when my mother went through it (I assume she did but I never asked her about it), it wasn’t right when I went through it and it […]
The sacred self: Reflections on female circumcision by a Singaporean Malay
(Originally posted by BEYONDHIJABSG on 6 FEBRUARY, 2016. Republished here with permission.) Country: Singapore Community: Malay By: Nurul Fadiah Johari I have a memory of my little sister going through circumcision. It is all vague to me now. I was 4, and she was a baby. I only remember being brought over to the house […]