Female Genital Mutilation And

Embryonic Stem Cell

Research

Pamela Nolan
Ninoska Garcia-Ortiz
What is Female Genital Mutilation?
 Female genital mutilation (FGM), often
referred to as 'female circumcision',
comprises all procedures involving partial
or total removal of the external female
genitalia or other injury to the female
genital organs whether for cultural,
religious or other non-therapeutic reasons.
(WHO, 2000)
 Normal Vagina

 Normal female
genitalia with
clitoris, labia
minora and labia
majora intact.
 Type 1 FGM
 usually involves excision
of the clitoral hood
(prepuce), with or without
excision of part or all of
the clitoris.
 In some cultures it may
involve a ritual pricking or
nicking of the clitoral
hood, without removal of
any tissue.
 Type 2 FGM
 form of female
circumcision most
commonly seen.
 It involves excision
of the clitoris with
partial or total
excision of the labia
minora. The tissue
is joined in the
midline above, or
just over urethra.
 Type 3 FGM
 Type 3 FGM is the
most extreme
presentation. It
involves excision
of part or all of the
external genitalia
and stitching/
narrowing of the
vaginal opening.
 HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF
FGM
 Long-term consequences
 Immediate complications
include severe pain, shock,
haemorrhage, urine
retention, ulceration of the
genital region and injury to
adjacent tissue.
Haemorrhage and infection
can cause death.
include cysts and
abscesses, keloid scar
formation, damage to the
urethra resulting in urinary
incontinence, dyspareunia
(painful sexual intercourse)
and sexual dysfunction and
difficulties with childbirth.
 Who performs it?
 FGM is usually
performed by a
traditional practitioner
with crude
instruments and
without anaesthetic.
 Among the more
affluent in society it
may be performed in
a health care facility
by qualified health
personnel.
 WHO is opposed to
medicalization of all
the types of female
genital mutilation.
 At what age?

 The age at which female genital mutilation

is performed varies from area to area. It is
performed on infants a few days old,
female children and adolescents and,
occasionally, on mature women.
 For what reasons?
 psychosexual reasons:
reduction or elimination
of the sensitive tissue
of the outer genitalia,
particularly the clitoris,
in order to attenuate
sexual desire in the
female, maintain
chastity and virginity
before marriage and
fidelity during marriage,
and increase male
sexual pleasure;
 sociological reasons: identification with the cultural
heritage, initiation of girls into womanhood, social
integration and the maintenance of social cohesion;
 religious
reasons: Some Muslim communities,
however, practise FGM in the belief that it is
demanded by the Islamic faith. The practice, however,
predates Islam.
Prevalence and distribution of
FGM
 Most of the girls and
women who have
undergone genital
mutilation live in 28
African countries,
although some live in
Asia and the Middle
East.
 Today, the number of girls and women who have been
undergone female genital mutilation is estimated at
between 100 and 140 million. It is estimated that each
year, a further 2 million girls are at risk of undergoing
FGM.
 What is a Stem Cell ?
Stem cells have the remarkable
potential to develop into many
different cell types in the body.
Serving as a sort of repair system for
the body, they can theoretically divide
without limit to replenish other cells as
long as the person or animal is still
alive.
 When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the
potential to either remain a stem cell or become another
anothe
type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a
muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.
 Why is it controversial?
 Stem cell research is controversial
because the best source of stem cells is
human fetal tissue. Harvesting the stem
cells destroys the embryo, which many
see as morally problematic.
 Embryonic stem cells
 Embryonic stem cells, as their name suggests, are
derived from embryos. Specifically, embryonic stem
cells are derived from embryos that develop from eggs
that have been fertilized in vitro—in an in vitro
fertilization clinic—and then donated for research
purposes.
 The embryos from which human embryonic
stem cells are derived are typically four or five
days old and are a hollow microscopic ball of
cells
Over the course of several days, the cells of the inner
cell mass proliferate and begin to crowd the culture
dish. When this occurs, they are removed gently and
plated into several fresh culture dishes. The process of
replating the cells is repeated many times and for
many months, and is called subculturing.
After six months or more, the original 30 cells of the
inner cell mass yield millions of embryonic stem cells.
Embryonic stem cells that have proliferated in cell
culture for six or more months without differentiating, are
referred to as an embryonic stem cell line.
 Extraction

A needle guided by ultrasound is passed through the

top wall of the egg donor's vagina, through her uterus,
into her ovary, and finally into the fluid-filled follicle.
 The follicles containing the eggs are
vacuumed out and the fluid is then given
to the laboratory for preparation and
fertilization.
 Complications
Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome
associated with ovulation induction
uses fertility drugs to increase the number of
follicles in the ovaries
Sometimes, too many follicles begin to develop in
the ovaries, causing them to become swollen and
enlarged
this syndrome can cause severe pain and trigger
the release of fluid into the abdomen and lungs.
 Egg Donor Requirements
 www.ovatherainbow.com
 YOU MUST BE:
 1) Between the ages of 18 and 29
 2) A high school graduate
 3) In good general health, disease-free, and willing to test

accordingly.
 4) Mature and responsible
 5) Available and committed to the donation process which
involves traveling to and from fertility clinics for monitoring
and retrieval. You must take numerous injections on a
strict schedule as well as blood tests, ultrasounds, and
undergo the retrieval procedure.

 *If
you are an experienced egg donor age limits
may be extended.
 Compensation or Prostitution?

 Suggested fee for a first time donation

is : $3,500-$4,500
 Slavery in the Bible
 However, you may purchase male or female
slaves from among the foreigners who live
among you. You may also purchase the
children of such resident foreigners,
including those who have been born in your
land. You may treat them as your property,
passing them on to your children as a
permanent inheritance. You may treat your
slaves like this, but the people of Israel, your
relatives, must never be treated this way.
(Leviticus 25:44-46)
 Slavery in 2007

 FGM is rooted in the concept of controlling

women and their sexuality
 Masked under the pretext of religious
motivations, rites of passage, ideas of
hygiene, enhancement of femininity and
aesthetics.
 Mothers are directly responsible for
arranging the genital mutiliation of their
daughters.
 Bio-Cellular War
 Sickle cell anaemia, hepatitis, HIV,
cancers
 In times of war, men between certain ages
can be drafted into combat
 Can women’s reproductive material be
drafted into scientific research?
 Slavery of the future

 "Strippedof ethical rationalizations and philosophical

pretensions, a crime is anything that a group in power
chooses to prohibit." (Freda Adler, President of the American Criminological
Society for the 1994-1995 term)
Our current reality
 Environmental chaos
 We are responsible for
some of our own
diseases
 We have failed to
acknowledge that
humanities
evolutionary quest has
resulted in many inter-
speciary casualties,
ranging from humans
to microscopic life
forms.
 Humanities Arrogance
 Today’s generation is on a path of self annihilation
 Should they be allowed to reach into tomorrow’s
generation in the attempts of fixing humanities’ crime
against humanity?
 What does it mean for women?
Women are the web weavers of
life
Propagators of humanity
Yet…
women are the most…
 FUCKED !
 www.dictionary.com
 To take advantage of, betray, or cheat;
victimize.
 Feminist theory
 Feminist theory aims to understand the
nature of inequality and focuses on gender
politics, power relations and sexuality.
 Themes explored in feminism include
discrimination, stereotyping, objectification
(especially sexual objectification),
oppression, and patriarchy
 Social Conflict Theory
 Social conflict theory argues that individuals
and groups (social classes) within society have
differing amounts of material and non-material
resources (the wealthy vs. the poor) and that
the more powerful groups use their power in
order to exploit groups with less power.
 society is created from ongoing social conflict
between various groups.
 theory states that groups within a capitalist
society tend to interact in a destructive way,
that allows no mutual benefit and little
cooperation.
 Self Evident
 Boththeories are
present in both issues