Male Circumcision: A Gender Perspective

Abstract

The practice of routine medical circumcision of newborn male infants remains the norm in the United States, occurring to more than one million baby boys annually. This article examines the history and continuing debate surrounding this surgery, and places it within the context of gender identity. The rise of the activist anti-circumcision movement is described, as medical, moral, psychological, and legal issues surrounding this controversy are identified. The continuing practice of male circumcision is framed as an abusive wounding of males, which holds lifelong implications. A differentiation is made between the conventional medical amputation of the foreskin, from that which is solely ritual, religious-based. Further, a societal double standard is noted between the moral outcry against female circumcision and the relative silence toward male circumcision.