This February 6th - International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, in recognition of this year’s theme - "Stepping Up the Pace. Strengthening Alliances and Building Movements to End FGM,” we are delighted to announce the formation of the Americas Alliance to End FGM/C. 

The Americas Alliance will serve as a coalition of organizations, governments, researchers, activists, and survivor advocacy groups, dedicated to ending female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) across the Americas. Recognizing FGM/C as a severe violation of human rights and a form of gender-based violence (GBV), the Alliance aims to unify efforts to support survivors, enhance prevention strategies, and promote gender equality throughout the region.

FGM/C impacts communities worldwide, including across North and South America, though misconceptions lead to falsely believing the Americas are immune from this form of gender-based violence. The latest data shows us that there may be over 700,000 women and girls across the United States and Canada affected by or at risk of FGM/C. FGM/C also continues to be reported in Colombia, where a bill has recently been introduced to combat the harmful practice. There is also historical evidence of FGM/C being practiced in Mexico, Brazil and Peru which requires further investigation to determine current practice. From survivors living with its physical and psychological consequences to girls at risk, FGM/C transcends borders and cultures, demanding a unified, coordinated, and survivor-centered response. ¹

Recognizing this need, we are proud to support the creation of the Americas Alliance —a collaborative network dedicated to addressing FGM/C through cross-border cooperation, shared knowledge and resources, and survivor-informed approaches. By bringing diverse voices and expertise together, the Americas Alliance aims to build capacity, amplify advocacy, and create lasting change.

Participants: 

The founding organizations of the Americas Alliance include The U.S. End FGM/C Network, the End FGM Canada Network, George Washington University, Equality Now, and Sahiyo U.S. The Americas Alliance will also involve additional diverse groups of stakeholders dedicated to ending FGM/C and supporting survivors across the Americas. The partners whom the Alliance will collaborate and engage with will include:

• Service-providing organizations
  Examples: Grassroots NGOs, community health organizations, and social service providers working directly with FGM/C survivors.
• Government representatives
  Examples: Government and intergovernmental development agencies and departments.
• Researchers
  Examples: Academic institutions, public health researchers, gender studies scholars, and independent experts focused on FGM/C.
• Activists
  Examples: Survivor-led advocacy groups, grassroots organizers, human rights defenders, and gender justice advocates.
• And more
  Examples: International organizations, private sector partners, legal advocates, faith-based organizations.

Our Shared Commitment

As participants of the Americas Alliance, we are dedicated to:

• Enhance data collection and knowledge sharing by establishing a robust framework for collecting and sharing data across countries, improving the accuracy of FGM/C prevalence estimates, and understanding its impact throughout the Americas. 
• Develop trauma-informed, culturally sensitive support systems by facilitating the creation of transnational support networks that are responsive to the cultural and holistic health needs of survivors. 
• Strengthen prevention strategies and policy frameworks by promoting the exchange of best practices and successful prevention models from diverse contexts within the Americas. 
• Coordinate consistent, survivor-centered communications by ensuring that messaging and communications around FGM/C align across the region, maintaining accuracy, and respect for the lived experiences of survivors. 

If you wish to learn more about the Americas Alliance to End FGM/C, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

  ¹ Efforts are aligned with key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), and SDG 17 (Global Partnerships).

To our Sahiyo community,

We realize that the past few weeks have been stressful to say the least. With the new administration’s slew of Executive Orders targeting the most vulnerable and the dismantlement of DEI programs at various organizations, we acknowledge that fear and trepidation are on the rise. If you’re in need of support, please check out the resources at the end of this blog.

We admit: we’re also concerned. It’s disturbing watching the Trump administration blatantly conflate FGC and gender-affirming care. As we explained in a recent blog, this not only endangers trans and LGBTQ+ youth but also survivors of FGM/C. 

Additionally, we know that the recent attempt to freeze federal funding has worried many of you given the potential it has to impact critical programs and resources for our community. We want to assure all of you that Sahiyo is working to secure more funding and continue our programing to support survivors.

We’re also working hard on no longer relying as much on government funding given it’s not a reliable source these days. To do that, though, we need your help. We understand these are hard times for everybody, but any kind of monetary donation would help us continue our work during the Trump era. Please, if you can, donate here.

In the meantime, we hope you are all taking care of yourselves and each other, and know that we will get through this together.

With love and in solidarity,

Sahiyo

Helpful resources:

• Our partner, the Asian Women’s Shelter, has a helpful crisis line for FGC survivors (1-877-751-0880)
• Rape / Sexual Abuse / Incest National Hotline (RAIN): 800-656-4673
• Members of the LGBTQ community can call 1-866-488-7386 or visit www.thetrevorproject.org 
• The South Asian Network provides a variety of health and wellbeing resources along with useful information to help immigrants protect themselves
• BlackLine Crisis Call Line: 1-800-604-5841 
• The National Hispanic Family Health Helpline, Su Familia: 1-866-783-2645
• Dial 988 or visit www.988lifeline.org if you or somebody you know are in a crisis or experiencing thoughts of suicide 
• Psychology Today is a large directory connecting you with therapists, support groups, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals in your area or virtually
• The ACLU provides information on your rights if you come into contact with or are questioned by immigration officers

The Connecticut (CT) Coalition to End FGM/C, of which Sahiyo is a founding member, is so pleased to see that Connecticut’s Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz has issued a citation to recognize February 6th as International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM/C, a day to “take time to support women and girls” and end this harmful form of gender-based violence. In the citation, the Lieutenant Governor uplifts the ongoing efforts of the Connecticut Coalition to End FGM/C to protect women and girls from female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C).

This recognition comes as the CT Coalition renews our push for passage of House Bill 6596 in the 2025 legislative session. The bill aims to establish educational programs, provide civil remedies for survivors, and criminalize FGM/C in the state. Connecticut remains one of only nine states without legal protections against this harmful practice.

This citation serves as a meaningful acknowledgment of the work our coalition has done to raise awareness, advocate for policy changes, and support survivors in Connecticut. We are grateful for this public awareness and see it as a reminder of the importance of continuing the CT Coalition’s mission to ensure that every child in the state is protected from FGM/C.

A special thank you to all the advocates, community members, and partners who stand with us in this effort.

We invite you to join us by continuing to raise awareness and support legislation to protect women and girls by signing our Call to Action and urging your CT representatives to ban FGM/C. 

Stay tuned for more updates on House Bill 6596 and upcoming advocacy initiatives.

At Sahiyo, we are disheartened and frustrated by the harmful conflation between female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and gender-affirming care made in a recent Executive Order issued by the Trump Administration. While this is unfortunately not the first attempt made by government officials to co-opt anti-FGM/C legislation to criminalize gender-affirming care for transgender and non-binary youth, the use of the Presidential platform to uplift discriminatory rhetoric and instill fear is shameful and must be addressed. 

FGM/C comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The practice has no health benefits for girls and women, and causes severe bleeding, problems urinating, as well as cysts, infections, and complications in childbirth and increased risk of newborn deaths, to name a few negative outcomes. The STOP FGM Act of 2020 made it clear that FGM/C was illegal in the United States.

These hard-fought legal protections for FGM/C survivors and those at-risk at the federal level must be preserved by calling out the Trump Administration’s inflammatory rhetoric for what it is: an attempt to dilute the protections already in place to protect survivors of FGM/C, and those at-risk of undergoing FGM/C to harm and discriminate against another vulnerable community. 

Sahiyo stands with survivors of FGM/C, some of whom also identify as transgender and non-binary, and who have prompted Sahiyo over the years to create programming that can better support their intersectional realities. In fact, Sahiyo studied the intersection between FGM/C and LGBTQIA+ issues in our Critical Intersections Research Project.

From our work with survivors, our research, and our experiences, we recognize that there are several key differences between FGM/C and gender-affirming care, namely the fundamental issues of consent and bodily autonomy. FGM/C is a human rights violation performed without consent that compromises the bodily autonomy of children and has negative physical and mental effects that can last a lifetime. Gender-affirming care is a medically necessary form of care that includes a diverse array of interventions to align one’s identity with their sexual characteristics; this care is only provided with the consent of the individual. Research has also shown that these treatments lead to decreased rates of depression, improvement in psychosocial functioning, and minimal long-term side effects.

In other words, FGM/C takes away bodily autonomy, while gender-affirming care preserves the bodily autonomy of the individual.

For additional information and research, we encourage you to read When Protecting Girls Is Twisted Into Attacking Trans Youth: FGM/C Survivors Fight Back Against Transphobic Right-Wing Narratives.

In Solidarity,

Sahiyo

In recognition of Feb 6th, International Day of Zero Tolerance to End FGM/C, and this year’s theme “Stepping up the Pace: Strengthening Alliances and Building Movements to End FGM,” our upcoming publication of Sahiyo’s third and final Critical Intersections Research Project report Examining Intersections Between Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting and Social Oppressions: A Qualitative Study could not be more timely. Our report’s findings reinforce the vital importance of recognizing intersectional identities and oppressions, as well as prioritizing the need to build cross-movement collaboration to strengthen the movement to end FGM/C.

Overall, our research reveals through extensive data and testimonials that we are stronger when we work together, contrasting the harmful and discriminatory rhetoric coming from the Trump Administration.

Expanding on the findings of our first two reports, this body of work includes insights derived from in-depth interviews conducted with 29 key experts across various social justice fields. 

The interviews were conducted across multiple geographic regions virtually via Zoom from November 2022 to February 2023. Two clear themes emerged: Intersectionality and Cross Collaboration. 

The report addresses the following topics within these two themes: 

• Intersections between FGM/C and Race, LGBTQIA+, Religion, and Gender. 
• Challenges and Opportunities to Cross Collaboration.

From these findings, four recommendations were derived to address FGM/C:

1. Coordinate with social service sectors across various social justice issues to improve support and resources for survivors. 
2. Improve language and framing of FGM/C to limit racialization and/or exclusion of marginalized communities in terms of who is impacted by FGM/C.
3. Increase education on how FGM/C is intersectional within anti-FGM/C organizations, as well as across different movements/sectors. 
4. Implement more diverse and equitable approaches to data collection, analysis and dissemination that include input from a diverse array of stakeholders.

Don’t miss our webinar, Intersectional Approaches Strengthen Alliances and Build Movements to End FGM/C, to learn more about the three-year project. 

Date/Time: February 27 @ 10-11:30 AM ET

Registration link: https://bit.ly/FGMCAlliances 

Description: This webinar, which is both a culmination of the Critical Intersections Research Project and a charted path forward, will loop in key players from throughout the project to share their experiences and explore key findings that emphasize how intersectional approaches in ending FGM/C, including building alliances and partnerships with other social justice movements, strengthens our overall work to end FGM/C.  

Speakers: 

Aarefa Johari is a journalist and feminist activist based in Mumbai, India. She has been advocating for an end to Female Genital Cutting since 2012 and is a co-founder of Sahiyo, an organisation working to end FGC.

Saza Faradilla (she/they) is a co-founder of End Female Genital Cutting Singapore, which envisions a world where the practice of FGC is obsolete. She raises awareness on social media and on-the-ground, and participates in local and international lobbying at the United Nations to bring attention to the fact that FGC is a pressing concern in Asia. Equally important, she calls for a culturally-contextual and intersectional feminist approach when dealing with sexual and gender based violence across diverse Asian communities.

Jessica Puri is an Adjunct Professor of Public Health and founder of The Parable Lab. Nicknamed a Creative Academic, she enjoys the pursuit of knowledge and rest through creative expression and storytelling.

Naquia Unwala is currently a medical student at Georgetown University School of Medicine. She is also a Research Associate at Cornell University where she studies homelessness, public health disasters, and urban politics. Naquia is a volunteer at Sahiyo, and has helped with leading qualitative analysis of the Critical Intersections Research Project.

Critical Intersections: Since 2021, through our survivor and advocate-led Critical Intersections Research Project, Sahiyo has sought to understand how systems of oppression have delayed progress toward ending female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), as well as explored the potential to build collaboration with other social justice movements to increase advocacy work on ending FGM/C. Inspired by a webinar in 2021 that sought to specifically examine the impact of systemic racism on the movement, this three-stage mixed-methods project has expanded that initial scope to understand the interplay between FGM/C and other oppressive forces such as Islamaphobia, xenophobia, transphobia, gender discrimination, and more. 

A special thank you to the Wallace Global Fund for funding this project!

Connecticut legislatures have recently introduced House Bill 6596 to protect girls and women from female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C). Connecticut is one of only nine states without legislation protecting children from FGM/C. FGM/C is a human rights violation and an extreme form of gender-based violence which causes severe physical and psychological damage. 

The introduction of this bill is a result of countless hours of advocacy from survivors and activists alike. The work, however, is not done!

Connecticut has not yet made it clear that FGM/C is an intolerable criminal offense in the state. Right now, in Connecticut alone, at least 2,658 women and girls have been subjected to or are at-risk of undergoing FGM/C. Surrounding states, such as New York and Massachusetts, have already banned FGM/C, potentially making Connecticut a refuge for those seeking to continue the harmful practice. It is up to the residents of Connecticut to demand that their state legislators prioritize the passage of this bill - which also would seek to create community education and outreach programs to address the human rights violations in the broader public.

Want to help us make Connecticut the 42nd state to protect women and girls from FGM/C by encouraging and supporting the passing of this bill? Sign our Call to Action and urge your state representatives to ban FGM/C. 

All you need to do is fill out your contact info and then hit send. The rest (what is in brackets) will automatically be filled out for you and sent to your legislator. Thank you for your support!