Intact America
Intact America is a registered non-governmental Intactivist (pro-intact or anti-infant circumcision) organization created in 2008 to advance the view that the circumcision of non-consenting minors is unethical and medically unnecessary, and therefore should be abandoned.[1] They also claim that circumcision reduces sexual sensation in males and that it is a violation of modern bio-ethical standards to forcibly remove erogenous tissue from children.[2] The activist organization uses traditional media, social-networking, lobbying, demonstrating, and other methods to encourage social change. The group has been mentioned in the Chicago Tribune,[3] New York Times,[4] MSNBC,[5] and Huffington Post.[6]
Participation in public policy debate on circumcision
In June 2009, Intact America issued a public statement regarding the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) conference on HIV, in which the group urged the CDC "to study the risks and ethics before recommending neonatal male circumcision." Intact America stated that "The CDC is moving down a path towards an indefensible recommendation in favor of subjecting newborn baby boys to unnecessary and potentially risky surgery with no medical benefit."[7]
Intact America placed an open letter to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in the Washington Post on October 19, 2009, urging the group to inform parents about the ethical and health implications of circumcision.[8] Following the AAP's release of their new circumcision policy statement on August 27, 2012,[9] Intact America formally demanded that the AAP retract the statement on the grounds that the policy was biased and did not protect the child's rights,[10] "It appears that the AAP is acting more as a trade association for doctors who perform this unnecessary surgery more than 1 million times a year, instead of standing up for the human rights and bodily integrity of the only patient that counts—the baby boy."
Intact America staged a protest outside the annual convention of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in May 2013 after they applied for a booth inside the exhibit hall, but we were denied because “male circumcision is … of only casual interest to members of ACOG.”[11] Obstetricians perform the majority of the million circumcisions that take place each year in the U.S.[12]
Leadership
Georganne Chapin, MPhil, JD, is Intact America’s executive director. Intact America is maintained by donations from private donors. The organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code.
References
- ↑ "Intact America Launches Campaign to Change How America Thinks About Male Circumcision". Reuters (republished press release). June 25, 2009.
- ↑ "Who We Are". Intact America.
- ↑ "Circumcision: Change in medical opinion possible". Chicago Tribune. August 27, 2009.
- ↑ "Circumcise or Don't? Quandary for Parents". New York Times. August 22, 2011.
- ↑ "Circumcision For All Boys?". MSNBC. August 24, 2009.
- ↑ "First, Do No Harm". Huffington Post. October 4, 2012.
- ↑ "Intact America Urges CDC to Study Risks and Ethics Before Recommending Neonatal Male Circumcision". Intact America. August 24, 2009.
- ↑ "Intact America Urges Pediatricians to Say No to Infant Circumcision--The Baby, Not The Parent, Is Your Patient". Washington Post. October 19, 2009.
- ↑ "Technical Report: Male Circumcision" (PDF). AAP. August 27, 2012.
- ↑ "Intact America’s Response to the American Academy of Pediatrics 2012 Report on Circumcision". Intact America. August 27, 2012.
- ↑ "Intactivists Call on Obstetricians Meeting in New Orleans to Stop Cutting Baby Boys".
- ↑ Stang, HJ; Snellman LW (1998). "Circumcision Practice Patterns in the United States". Pediatrics 101 (8): e5. doi:10.1542/peds.101.6.e5. PMID 9606247.