I underwent genital mutilation in my country of orgin when i was six years old. All this to be accepted by their culture. Women in western societies make decisions every day about their bodies and the alteration of them in order to be accepted. SOme might not consider the following as horrific as FGM, but I sure do. They can be just as debilitating.
Women resort to bulimia, anorexia, starvation, and exercising to the point of being physically ill.
They do this in order to meet a standard of body image created by advertisers and marketers. I know this has strayed from the immediate topic at hand, but I believe the two have much in common, the desirability of women being accepted by their respective cultures. The information I am going to relate next has been gleaned from the many informative and passionate discussions on this list. It is not personal knowledge, so if there are any errors please let me know. But in these cultures that practice FGM, it is not only the men who demand their future or current wives to undergo the sacrificing of their femaleness, but it is the sisters, mothers, and aunts who push and coerce women into submitting to the ritual.