Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) affects an estimated 100 to 140 million girls and women worldwide.
The WHO has classified four types of FGM, depending on severity:
Type 1: removal of the clitoral hood, often accompanied with the clitoris.
Type 2: Removal of the clitoris and inner labia.
Type 3: Infibulation, the most severe form of FGM, involves cutting some or all of the external genitalia, leaving only a very small opening for urination and menstruation.
Type 4: Ranges from cauterization of the clitoris to cutting the vagina to widen it.
The cultures which practice FGM tend to be in states which receive large amounts of aid from the US. These states must be pressured into criminalizing and prosecuting FGM, and we can help by threatening to withdraw aid and using economic sanctions.