#EndFGMToday Calls on Massachusetts—One of the Last 15 States to Criminalize Cruel Practice of FGM—to Protect Woman and Girls
A growing list of Massachusetts lawmakers are working together to ensure that the horrific practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) is outlawed in the state.
Along with other groups and impassioned advocates, the national EndFGMToday campaign has repeatedly called on Massachusetts lawmakers to pass a law that would punish perpetrators who inflict this unnecessary procedure that leaves both physical and emotional scars for a lifetime.
House Bill 4606, presented by state Reps. Natalie M. Higgins and Jay D. Livingstone, would establish criminal penalties for those committing FGM of imprisonment for up to 10 years and a fine of up to $10,000 and allow for civil lawsuits by victims, according to The Telegram. Senate Bill 834 has also been introduced by Sen. Joseph A. Boncore. Both bills have significant numbers of co-sponsors.
“Although the Population Reference Bureau ranks Massachusetts in the top-quarter tier of states at risk of female genital mutilation with an estimated 14,200 women and girls in danger of this practice, Massachusetts has thus far failed to pass legislation to criminalize FGM,” said EndFGMToday leader, international attorney and child advocate Elizabeth Yore. “2020 must be the year the Bay State outlaws FGM forever.
“If Susan B. Anthony, one of America’s most famous female activists, who was born in Adams, Massachusetts, looked at her home state’s legislative history in this crucial area, it would be fair to say she would be shocked and deeply disappointed that Massachusetts still has not criminalized female genital mutilation,” Yore added. “She would not be able to fathom what could possibly prevent the passage of legislation to punish a vicious and barbaric practice of mutilating the genitals of innocent little Massachusetts girls.”
Residents have also taken action in the fight against FGM by starting a Change.org petition last year, which now has over 320,000 signatures.
Yore also noted that female genital mutilation is recognized by both the World Health Organization and the United Nations as a human rights violation. Additionally, over 200 million women worldwide have been subjected to this cruel practice, and the CDC estimates that more than 500,000 girls are at risk of female genital mutilation in the United States.
Visit EndFGMToday.com for a state-by-state map of those who do have anti-FGM laws and learn more about FGM at www.EndFGMToday.com or on social media at #EndFGMToday.
