Female Genital Mutilation

[MachineGhost]

Wow, WTF?  I was thinking this was just practiced by a small number of backwards, rural tribes in Africa but it seems to be much more significant than that.

[quote=https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/jaha ... /x/5570079#/]FGM is prevalent in 28 countries in Africa alone and involves the partial or total removal of female genitalia. 130 million women live with it's consequences and an estimated 6,000 girls are "cut" every day. This ritual is very painful and traumatic and often results in severe bleeding and fatal blood infections — Jaha’s sister died as a result of it. It also destroys sexual pleasure for women.

Wherever the documentary's cameras went there were FGM survivors who shared their stories.  All are different but the impact of the violence done to each woman's body is an ever present trauma in their lives. The ambition of Jaha's Journey is to represent that pain and bring it to the attention of the world.

Last year Jaha launched an extraordinary campaign and grassroots organization to end FGM in The Gambia. It's already having a big impact. One result of the campaign is that for the first time there is serious consideration being given to making FGM illegal. It is also being seen as a template for campaigns against FGM in other countries in Africa.

Jaha's story and her journey contains within it the narrative of countless girls whose stories we'll never hear, their lives lived in the shadows, their dreams unfulfilled. The ambition of this film is to draw attention to their existence or, better still, that they themselves will see the film and draw hope from it, if not for themselves then at least for their daughters.[/quote]