“You take the private part of her body, … you are taking a part of her life”: Voices of circumcised African migrant women on female genital circumcision (FGC) in Australia

Abstract

Western countries working toward eradication of female genital mutilation require better inclusion of women originally from countries where the practice is prevalent. However, few authors have examined the knowledge, attitudes, and experiences of circumcised African migrant women in western countries. Our findings from 40 responses from self-reported survey and five in-depth interviews show that the participating African migrant women know the reasons behind female genital circumcision (FGC), are living with the negative consequences of FGC, and have a zero tolerance attitude toward the practice. Circumcised women are in the best position to define their health needs and champion global efforts to eradicate FGC.