Further back, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, America's blandest mad cereal scientist, recommended removing the clitoris as a legitimate treatment for nymphomania. And it's still a global problem: "In the last couple years, there's been a lot of evidence has been gathered to show that it's happening also in other places, such as Russia, Colombia, and parts of Asia like Singapore, Malaysia."
Several Christian sects, and even one group of Ethiopian Jews, also practice cutting. "I think people like to 'other' it, saying it happens only in religious places and Africa, so you don't think about the fact that it's happening in medical settings, or that it's happening in the U.S., or it's happening in Ontario. That's why I always try to emphasize it is a global issue ... the large-scale data [gathered] by organizations such as UNICEF unfortunately only report FGM prevalence for 30 countries at this point, but there are many other countries where it's been reported."
And due to increases in immigration from regions where FGM is practiced, more than 500,000 women have undergone it, or are likely to be subjected to it, right here in the U.S. The largest risk groups live in California, Minnesota, and New York. When somebody brings up female genital mutilation, don't think rural Africa -- think Duluth.

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