PAST ARTICLES AND EDITORIAL BOARDS

The Criminalization of Female Genital Mutilation in the United States
Karen Hughes
4 J.L. & Pol'y 321 (1995)

This Note proposes that Congress enact legislation to prohibit the practice of female genital mutilation ("FGM") in the United States. FGM refers to several types of genital operations performed on young girls -- from newborn babies to adolescents -- where part or all of the external female genitalia are removed. FGM is most often practiced in African and Middle Eastern countries; however, as immigrants from FGM practicing countries settle in the United States, they bring with them the tradition of FGM. Evidence exists that physicians and families practice FGM in secrecy within immigrant communities in the United States.

This Note argues that Congress can no longer ignore the evidence that FGM is being performed on young girls in the United States and proposes that Congress join other Westernized countries in enacting legislation to criminalize FGM. Part I describes the origins of and continuing justifications advanced for the practice of FGM, as well as the history of FGM in the United States. Part II summarizes the criminalization and treatment of FGM in other Western and African countries. Part III analyzes constitutional and legal issues involved in passing federal legislation criminalizing FGM, such as the constitutional guarantees of privacy and freedom of religious exercise. Lastly, this Note analyzes the Federal Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act of 1995, authored by Congresswoman Patricia Schroeder, which would make the practice of FGM a federal crime and suggests modification to the proposed bill.