FGM: Female Genital Mutilation Must be Outlawed Worldwide Essay

Female Genital Mutilation, shortened to FGM in most medical texts, is â€Å"collective name given to several different traditional practices that involve the cutting of female genitals.† FGM is a common cultural practice in many parts of the world, especially Africa and Asia that was established hundreds of years ago. There are many different types of FGM, ranging from clitoridectomy, to cutting and infibulations (Skaine 7). Even though these procedures are accepted in the areas they are practiced, FGM has become a human rights discussion resurfacing in recent years because the procedures serve no purpose. Female Genital Mutilation is an unethical practice that should be outlawed throughout the entire world. FGM, specifically infibulation, is believed to have started in Arabia and then spread to Africa through a well-established trade route. FGM has never been considered a hygienic practice because most of the procedures make hygiene more difficult (Pieters). The sole purpose of FGM is to make sexual contact unsatisfactory for the woman, no matter what the motive is. Some girls go through FGM procedures at a young age to calm their fathers’ nerves and others undergo the procedures so she won’t stray from her husband. In Egypt, 97 percent of women have undergone a Female Circumcision procedure sometime in their lives while only 82 percent approve of it. An Indonesian study showed that midwives performed from about 68 to 88 percent of all procedures (Skaine 42). Most of the time, girls that receive a Female Circumcision don’t even get a chance to voice their opinions because they are too young when the procedure is performed. While Female Genital Mutilation procedures serve their purpose, to take away sexual satisfaction, every advers... ...problem is viewed by the public. According to the Womankind Worldwide organization, in order to achieve the abolition of FGM two things must happen: â€Å"FGM needs to be firmly [placed] on national governments’ agendas and there must be clear laws specifically criminalizing FGM† (Womankind Worldwide 32). Until those two things happen, Female Genital Mutilation will continue to be a worldwide concern. Developed nations must help the countries â€Å"lagging behind† to smooth the progress of eradicating FGM (Skaine 79). The frequency of genital cutting in individual countries makes the practice seem irrelevant in many parts of the world; however the practice is a worldwide human rights concern. A person’s body should not be deformed, unless for hygienic or medical reasons, without the individual’s permission therefore any form of Female Genital Mutilation should not take place.

Controversy on the Mixing of African and Cuban Culture Essay

The personal narratives, â€Å"Afrocubanismo and Son† by Robin Moore, â€Å"Dance and Social Change, â€Å"Rumba† by Yvonne Daniel, and â€Å"Buena Vista Social Club† by Dir. Wim Wenders offer an extensive look at the Afro-Cuban music and dance. Moore writes his article based on the Son. Son is a mixture of African and Spanish influence. Daniel in both of her articles talks about rumba, which is a dance and music genre that originated in Cuba in the mid 1800s. She talks about the different kinds of rumba, which are the Yambu, the Guaguaco, and the vacunao. Wenders is providing us with an image of how Cuban musicians play their music, providing us with some the most popular songs from Cuba. Thousands of African slaves were brought to Cuba, and although treated like animals, their music has had a major influence on Cuban that any other type of music from other countries, creating a bond between both cultures. I found all three articles very informative. Moore, Daniel, and Wenders exposed a number of new information into my mind, and maybe into any other individual that didn’t had much knowledge about Cuban music and dance. As an example, I hadn’t thought about the fact that after much discrimination against Africans, they were going to end up mixing their music and dance with African music and dance. I really like the fact that Cubans ended up accepting part of Africans Culture. Although, we see that the government in many occasion prohibited the people to play the Son and many other influences from African Culture, it was not enough from them to stop the people from mixing both cultures. We also see in â€Å"Buena Vista Social Club† a man who brings together a group of mostly aging and forgotten artists. I don’t like the fact that political events and social issues have played a role in the segregation of these artists. I don’t believe that those people should have been discriminated in such way just because they were mixing both cultures. As the slaves were able to buy their freedom an increased interaction and ethnic mixing among Cubans and Africans was the result. As I was reading that both cultures began to combine, it came to my mind that African people really have a nice heart because by uniting with Cubans they are demonstrating that they had forgiven all the suffering they went through. An example of they unity is the son, and the different kinds of rumba mentioned by Daniel and Moore. We see that the people that were coming together were mostly from working class Cubans and Africans. I find it shameful that most rich people weren’t accepting African culture, and to make it worse ended up making people like those musicians that we see in Buena Vista to be forgotten. In reading Daniel’s articles, I was able to see how people enjoy dancing rumba and many other kinds of dances. And how people especially among the working class uses dancing and music as a way to blow off steam and have fun. Now, I can see why African were always dancing and singing, because that way they could forget about the pain and suffering that they were going through. I didn’t like the fact that the government was calling most of the dancing and music from Africa â€Å"immortal†. I don’t believe that it was appropriated to call their dancing that way. In conclusion, although there was a lot of controversy on the mixing of both cultures, it wasn’t enough to stop the people from mixing it. It was like a destiny meant by God to mix those cultures, to create not just Afro-Cuban culture, but Cuban Culture.

10 Fascinating Things About Black Widow Spiders

Black widow spiders are feared for their potent venom, and rightfully so, to some degree. But much of what you think is true about the black widow is probably more myth than fact. Interesting Things About Black Widow Spiders These 10 fascinating facts about black widow spiders will teach you how to identify them, how they behave, and how to minimize your risk of being bitten. Widow spiders arent always black When most people talk about the black widow spider, they likely think theyre referring to a particular spider species. But in the U.S. alone, there are three different kinds of black widows (northern, southern, and western). And although we tend to refer to all members of the genus Lactrodectus as black widows, widow spiders arent always black. There are 31 species of Lactrodectus spiders worldwide. In the U.S., these include a brown widow and a red widow. Only adult female black widows inflict dangerous bites Female widow spiders are larger than males. It is believed, therefore, that female black widows can penetrate vertebrate skin more effectively than males and inject more venom when they bite. Nearly all medically significant black widow bites are inflicted by female spiders. Male widow spiders and spiderlings are rarely a cause for concern, and some experts even say they dont bite. Black widow females rarely eat their mates Lactrodectus spiders are widely thought to practice sexual cannibalism, where the smaller male is sacrificed after mating. In fact, this belief is so widespread the term black widow has become synonymous for femme fatale, a kind of seductress who lures men with the intention of bringing harm to them. But studies show that such behavior is actually quite rare in widow spiders in the wild, and even uncommon among captive spiders. Sexual cannibalism is actually practiced by quite a few insects and spiders and is not unique to the often maligned black widow. Most (but not all) widow spiders can be identified by a red hourglass marking Nearly all black widow females bear a distinct hourglass-shaped marking on the underside of the abdomen. In most species, the hourglass is bright red or orange, in sharp contrast to its shiny black abdomen. The hourglass may be incomplete, with a break in the middle, in certain species like the northern black widow (Lactrodectus variolus). However, the red widow, Lactrodectus bishopi, does not have an hourglass marking, so be mindful that not all widow spiders are identified by this feature. Black widow spiderlings look nothing like the black and red spiders we recognize as black widows Widow spider nymphs are mostly white when they hatch from the egg sac. As they undergo successive molts, the spiderlings gradually darken in color, from tan to gray, usually with white or beige markings. Female spiderlings take longer to reach maturity than their brothers but eventually turn dark black and red. So that drab, pale little spider you found just might be a widow spider, albeit an immature one. Black widows make cobwebs Black widow spiders belong to the spider family Theridiidae, commonly called the cobweb spiders. These spiders, black widows included, construct sticky, irregular silk webs to ensnare their prey. Members of this spider family are also referred to as comb-foot spiders because they have a row of bristles on their back legs to help them wrap silk around their prey. But no need to worry. Although they are closely related to the house spiders building cobwebs in the corners of your home, black widows rarely come indoors. Female black widows have poor eyesight Black widows rely on their silk webs to see whats going on around them because they cant see very well. The black widow female usually hides in a hole or crevice and builds her web as an extension of her hiding spot. From the safety of her retreat, she can feel the vibrations of her web when either prey or predator comes in contact with the silk threads. Male widow spiders looking for mates use this to their advantage. The male black widow will cut and rearrange the females web, making it difficult for her to sense whats happening, before carefully approaching her to mate. Black widow venom is 15 times as toxic as that of the prairie rattlesnake Widow spiders do pack a powerful punch of neurotoxins in their venom. By volume, Lactrodectus venom is an extremely toxic mix of poisons capable of causing muscle cramps, severe pain, hypertension, weakness and sweating in bite victims. But black widow spiders are significantly smaller than rattlesnakes, and theyre built for subduing other small invertebrates, not large mammals like people. When a black widow spider bites a person, the volume of neurotoxins injected in the victim is small.   Black widow spider bites are rarely fatal Although black widow bites can be painful and require medical treatment, they are very rarely fatal.  In fact, the majority of black widow bites cause only mild symptoms, and many bite victims dont even realize they were bitten. In a review of over 23,000 documented Lactrodectus envenomation cases that occurred in the U.S. from 2000 to 2008, the study authors noted that not a single death occurred as a result of a black widow bite. Only 1.4% of bite victims suffered major effects of black widow venom. Before the invention of indoor plumbing, most black widow bites occurred in outhouses Black widows dont often invade homes, but they do like to inhabit human-built structures like sheds, barns, and outhouses. And unfortunately for those who lived before the water closet was commonplace, black widows like to retreat under the seats of outdoor privies, perhaps because the smell attracts so many delicious flies for them to catch. Men who use pit toilets should be aware of this disturbing little factoid – most black widow bites are inflicted on penises, thanks to their tendency to dangle threateningly into the black widows territory beneath the seat. A 1944 case study published in the Annals of Surgery noted that, of 24 black widow bite cases reviewed, eleven bites were on the penis, one was on the scrotum, and four were on the buttocks. A full 16 of the 24 victims were bitten while sitting on the toilet. Sources Physicians Guide to Arthropods of Medical Significance, 6th edition, by Jerome Stoddard.Bugs Rule! An Introduction to the World of Insects, by Whitey Cranshaw and Richard Redak.The Black Widow Spider, by Karen M. Vail, Carl Jones, and Harry Williams, University of Tennessee. Accessed online August 12, 2015.Black Widow Spider, Occupational Safety and Health Administration fact sheet, U.S. Department of Labor. Accessed online August 12, 2015.Black Widow Spider, North Carolina State University. Accessed online August 12, 2015.Black Widow and Other Widow Spiders, University fo California IPM Program. Accessed online August 12, 2015.The Black Widow, Alabama Cooperative Extension System. Accessed online August 12, 2015.Genus Lactrodectus – Widow Spiders, Bugguide.net. Accessed online August 12, 2015.The Treatment of Black Widow Spider Envenomation with Antivenin Latrodectus Mactans: A Case Series, by S. R. Offerman, G. P. Daubert, and R. F. Clark. The Permanente Journal,  15(3), 7 6–81 (2011). Accessed online August 12, 2015.A US Perspective of SymptomaticLatrodectus  spp. Envenomation and Treatment: A National Poison Data System Review, by Andrew A. Monte, Becki Bucher-Bartelson, and Kennon J. Heard. Annals of Pharmacotherapy, 45(12), 1491-1498 (December 2011). Accessed online August 12, 2015.Black Widow Spider Bite, by H. T. Kirby-Smith.  Annals of Surgery, 115(2), 249–257 (1942).