Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity
Based on fieldwork among Kurds in Norway, this article explores how participants described the presence of female genital cutting (FGC) in Kurdistan as a difficult topic to address in public. Perceptions of how FGC should be addressed ranged from acknowledging and directly confronting it to silencin...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Helsinki University Press
2019-09-01
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| Series: | Nordic Journal of Migration Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journal-njmr.org/articles/301 |
| _version_ | 1818390293339176960 |
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| author | Ingvild Bergom Lunde Mette Sagbakken R. Elise B. Johansen |
| author_facet | Ingvild Bergom Lunde Mette Sagbakken R. Elise B. Johansen |
| author_sort | Ingvild Bergom Lunde |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Based on fieldwork among Kurds in Norway, this article explores how participants described the presence of female genital cutting (FGC) in Kurdistan as a difficult topic to address in public. Perceptions of how FGC should be addressed ranged from acknowledging and directly confronting it to silencing and rejecting it as a Kurdish practice. The participants associated FGC with a “traditional mindset” and perceptions of female sexuality that did not readily fit into new ideologies of women’s liberation. Based on literature on how to manage a “difficult” characteristic in national identity construction, we argue that the participants’ negotiation of “modern” and “traditional” aspects of national identity is one strategy for dealing with FGC. FGC has the potential for spoiled national identity. However, we find reason to suggest that a condemnation of the practice based on women’s liberation may strengthen the aspects of Kurdish national aspirations that are grounded in human rights and gender equality. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T04:55:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b59a9cc1777c45048923735eebefbea2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1799-649X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T04:55:19Z |
| publishDate | 2019-09-01 |
| publisher | Helsinki University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nordic Journal of Migration Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-b59a9cc1777c45048923735eebefbea22022-12-21T23:16:24ZengHelsinki University PressNordic Journal of Migration Research1799-649X2019-09-019336338110.2478/njmr-2019-0011278Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National IdentityIngvild Bergom Lunde0Mette Sagbakken1R. Elise B. Johansen2University of Oslo, Oslo; Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, OsloOslo Metropolitan University, OsloNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, OsloBased on fieldwork among Kurds in Norway, this article explores how participants described the presence of female genital cutting (FGC) in Kurdistan as a difficult topic to address in public. Perceptions of how FGC should be addressed ranged from acknowledging and directly confronting it to silencing and rejecting it as a Kurdish practice. The participants associated FGC with a “traditional mindset” and perceptions of female sexuality that did not readily fit into new ideologies of women’s liberation. Based on literature on how to manage a “difficult” characteristic in national identity construction, we argue that the participants’ negotiation of “modern” and “traditional” aspects of national identity is one strategy for dealing with FGC. FGC has the potential for spoiled national identity. However, we find reason to suggest that a condemnation of the practice based on women’s liberation may strengthen the aspects of Kurdish national aspirations that are grounded in human rights and gender equality.https://journal-njmr.org/articles/301kurdish nationalismkurdish feminismfemale genital mutilation/cuttingnorwaynational identity |
| spellingShingle | Ingvild Bergom Lunde Mette Sagbakken R. Elise B. Johansen Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity Nordic Journal of Migration Research kurdish nationalism kurdish feminism female genital mutilation/cutting norway national identity |
| title | Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity |
| title_full | Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity |
| title_fullStr | Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity |
| title_short | Negotiating Female Genital Cutting as a Difficult Characteristic in Kurdish National Identity |
| title_sort | negotiating female genital cutting as a difficult characteristic in kurdish national identity |
| topic | kurdish nationalism kurdish feminism female genital mutilation/cutting norway national identity |
| url | https://journal-njmr.org/articles/301 |
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