Advocacy
Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation advocates for laws against FGM in the United States and around the world.
Latest Updates
January 5, 2021: H.R. 6100, the “STOP FGM Act of 2020,” was signed into law. This U.S. federal law amends Title 18 of the United States Code, to clarify the criminalization of female genital mutilation (FGM) and increase penalties for breaking the law. The law properly defines FGM, which is extremely important in protecting all girls from this harmful practice; addresses who is accountable under the law; and ensures that federal agencies measure FGM and report on their activities to implement the law. H.R. 6100 was authored and introduced by U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), the 2020 recipient of the “Lisa C. Bruch Woman of the Year” award by the Global Woman Awards. Two board members of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation—Executive Director Angela Peabody, and Dr. Karen McDonnell—participated in the initial crafting of H.R. 6100.
Read the bill: H.R. 6100
Read a news release from the U.S. House Judiciary Committee
L to R: Monalisa Dugue, Deputy Chief Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives; Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation founder and executive director, Angela Peabody; GWPF board member and George Washington University Milken School of Public Health faculty member Dr. Karen McDonnell; and Attorney Advocate Shelby Quast in the U.S. House of Representatives, where they appeared to testify in support of House bill H.R. 6100.
2020
On August 6, the Governor of Massachusetts signed into law anti-FGM bill H4606. The law criminalizes FGM and includes provisions for education and prevention programs.
2019
In July 2019, Virginia passed Senate Bill S.B. 1159, a statewide law requiring all public schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia to include FGM in their Family Life Education (health and sex education) curriculum. Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation was instrumental in working with former Virginia State Senator Richard Black to put forth that education bill. Virginia became the first state in the U.S. to pass such a law.
In 2019, Utah, Iowa, Idaho, Ohio, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania passed laws in their states to have FGM criminalized.
2018
Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation worked with former Virginia State Senator Richard Black to have FGM criminalized in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The law passed in 2018. Virginia’s law prohibits vacation cutting, including transportation across state lines. In addition, the law allows a survivor of FGM to sue her parents, guardians, or anyone who played a role in her excision for punitive and compensatory damages, when she attains the age of 18.
Anti-FGM Legislation in the United States
State Laws. Currently, 39 states have laws prohibiting the practice of FGM, including Virginia and Maryland. Washington, DC has proposed legislation that would prohibit the practice of FGM and penalties could include imprisonment for up to 10 years and fines up to $25,000. Virginia’s law carries a Class 2 Felony of imprisonment for 25 to Life with $100,000 fine. The following U.S. states currently have laws prohibiting FGM: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Federal Law. A United States federal law banning FGM was passed in 1996. It prohibits anyone, including physicians and other medical personnel, from assisting with, or performing FGM on a girl under the age of 18 years old. In 2013, the Federal Law of 1996 was amended to include “vacation cutting.” Vacation cutting is when a girl is knowingly transported from the United States or a U.S. Territory for the purpose of having FGM performed on her. Approximately 15 U.S. states also have prohibitions against vacation cutting in their state laws.
Unfortunately, in November 2018, in a well publicized legal case in Michigan, a federal judge threw out a case against a doctor who had been performing FGM, finding that the federal law against FGM was unconstitutional. The U.S. Department of Justice, in April 2019, declined to appeal the judge’s decision and defend the federal law. The law, passed in 1996, was superseded by the anti-FGM legislation signed into law on Jan. 5, 2021.
Anti-FGM Legislation Worldwide
According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls were at risk of FGM. And because of population growth, this number is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030, unless efforts to end FGM are intensified. If FGM continues at the current rates, an estimated 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25 countries where FGM is routinely practiced and relevant data are available.
The UNFPA estimates that at least 59 countries have passed laws against FGM, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Norway, Sweden and New Zealand. Of the 29 countries in Africa where FGM is traditionally practiced, 26 currently have laws prohibiting FGM.