WUNRN
DIRECT LINK TO VIDEO SEGMENT FOR
AFRICA RISING FILM ON FGM:
Equality Now
3 June 2010
SOME IMMIGRANT GIRLS IN US AT RISK OF FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM) DURING SCHOOL VACATIONS OVERSEAS
NO PROTECTION UNDER
FEDERAL LAW
FGM SURVIVORS CALL ON US CONGRESS TO URGENTLY ADDRESS LOOPHOLE IN ANTI-FGM LAW
BY PASSING THE GIRLS
PROTECTION ACT
New York – Every summer or during school holidays, girls from FGM-practicing immigrant communities in the U.S. are faced with the real and imminent threat of being subjected to FGM while on vacation in their parents’ country of origin.
Although U.S. federal law enacted in 1996 bans FGM, it does not address the act of transporting girls overseas to be subjected to FGM. Congressman Joseph Crowley (D-NY) and Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) have introduced The Girls Protection Act (H.R. 5137), a new bipartisan legislation that would address this gaping loophole. This press conference will highlight survivors’ voices from the African diaspora community, human rights advocates, and service providers, who will describe how FGM affects girls within practicing communities here in the U.S. and call on Washington to pass this important new legislation.
International human rights organization Equality Now, and Sanctuary for Families, an organization working with victims of domestic violence and sex trafficking, will be joined by Congressman Joseph Crowley (D-NY) in a press conference on June 7, 2010 at 9.30 am at the New York Women’s Foundation to highlight a new legislative effort aimed at protecting girls living in the U.S. from being subjected to FGM.
Background
FGM a harmful traditional practice involving the removal of part or all of the
female genitalia, is carried out in 28 African countries, some countries in
Asia and the Middle East, as well as in locations where FGM-practicing
immigrants reside, including the United States, Europe and Australia. It is
estimated that 100 to 140 million girls and women have been subjected to FGM
around the world. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimated in
1997 that over 168,000 girls and women living in the U.S. have either been, or
are at risk of being, subjected to FGM.
Taina Bien-Aimé, Executive Director of Equality Now says, “There have been ground-breaking advancements made by grassroots groups across Africa in the movement to end FGM and anti-FGM laws in several European countries have applied the principle of extraterritoriality, commonly known as the ‘vacation provision.’ The U.S. must not lag behind in safeguarding girls’ fundamental human rights. Congress must pass the The Girls Protection Act.” Adds Archana Pyati, Senior Staff Attorney at Sanctuary for Families, “FGM is a very real threat to the safety and health of girls and young women living in this country. The practice is an unacceptable expression of discrimination against women no matter where it occurs, and we congratulate Representatives Crowley and Bono Mack for their initiative.”
Equality Now is an international human rights organization that works to protect and promote the civil, political, economic and social rights of girls and women. For more information on FGM or the work of Equality Now, see www.equalitynow.org.
Sanctuary for Families is a leading nonprofit in New York State dedicated to working exclusively with victims of domestic violence, victims of sex trafficking, and their children. For more information about Sanctuary's work, visit www.sanctuaryforfamilies.org.
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