Summary: | Duration: 01:32:00
As many as 100 - 140 million women worldwide have been subjected to female circumcision, a practice that dates back to ancient Egypt and which can be found in many traditional cultures today. It is estimated that as many as two million young girls undergo this painful and life threatening operation every year. Set in Kenya, the film explores the tradition of female circumcision in both Kenyan society and among the large group of Somali émigrés. Even though the practice is officially outlawed, cultural acceptance in these societies depends heavily on the fact of female circumcision, and the practice shows no signs of declining. Men support it as a way of guaranteeing fidelity, but it is women, mothers who were circumcised themselves, who are often the most outspoken supporters of the practice. Increasingly, young girls seek to defy their parents and avoid this painful and debilitating ritual.
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