Blog

Guest blog by Esther Njenga. Sixteen months after our first visit to the home of the impressive Maasai Cricket Warriors (MCW), Cricket Without Boundaries (CWB) and 28 Too Many were back to Laikipia North; this time joined by two coaches from the Lancashire County Cricket Club Foundations who were eager to learn how the tripartite teams use cricket to educate and campaign on important community issues has worked.

28 Too Many’s new report investigates the growing involvement of health professionals in FGM and highlights what actions need to be taken to reverse this dangerous trend. Medicalised FGM remains a very risky procedure and does nothing to mitigate the fact that this is a severe form of violence against girls and women, a violation of their human rights and has life-long physical, emotional and sexual implications for survivors.

Guest blog by Dr Faith Mwangi-Powell. To mark the Day of the African Child we are pleased to share a guest blog by Dr Faith Mwangi-Powell, Global Director of The Girl Generation on why we must abandon all forms of FGM and prevent its medicalisation. The Medicalisation of FGM report from the 28 Too Many charity argues that a medicalised version of the practice has increased in a number of countries.

Jules, aged 32 from Dunstable, is a volunteer for the HIV/AIDS and FGM Awareness Charity, Cricket Without Boundaries. Despite only taking up running 18 months ago Jules Farman is about to take on a 60 mile run over the Pennines between Leeds and Manchester in 2.5 days to raise awareness about FGM.

Blog by Ann-Marie Wilson. Last week I was pleased to be able to attend a performance of Charlene James' new play Cuttin' It at the Young Vic. This is an uncompromising piece of work which takes an important look at the issue of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK. The play explores the issue of FGM through the views of two teenage girls, born in Somalia and now living in London.

Research blog by Megan Park. The failure to respond adequately to the growing prevalence of FGM in the UK over recent years has likely resulted in the preventable mutilation of thousands of girls to whom the state owed a duty of care. This is a national scandal for which successive governments, politicians, the police, health, education and social care sectors all share responsibility.
(Home Affairs Committee, 2014, Conclusions and Recommendations)

Over the past six months and despite undertaking demanding academic studies, a dedicated group of undergraduates at Oxford University formed a research panel and have undertaken extra work to study female genital mutilation (FGM). In this unique collaboration between the Oxford University branch of Lawyers Without Borders and 28 Too Many, students volunteered to join this project to educate themselves and others on the harm of FGM and how we can help end this practice.

Research blog by Serene Chung. A research blog by Serene Chung which investigates the psychological effects of female genital mutilation (FGM) within migrant communities in the United Kingdom. Considering avaiable literature and interviews with experts, Serene analyses the psychological disorders suffered by the individual, considering their migrant cultural identity and also considers the psychological impact of FGM in the context of relationships between the women and their spouses or families.

Guest blog by Anna Sørensen. “FGM isn’t something that’s isolated to one place or one group of people. It’s a wider feminist issue, a human issue, which needs to be addressed collectively.”
-    Alice Denny

Campaign update by Anna Sørensen. London Mayoral candidate Sophie Walker from Women’s Equality Party recently launched her manifesto of changes the party is pledging to make if it is voted in. One of pledges made by the party is to work in partnership with specialist BME women’s services to ensure cultural related violence, such as female genital mutilation, will never happen in London.