Spring Break
Using humor to educate
Comedian Sia Amma instructs about genital mutilation, femals circumcision
Lori Hanley, Daily Staff Writer
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"Lets talk about the clitoris. It's a wonderful thing," Amma said to start the event.
She said the clitoris is nine inches long and has more than 8,000 nerve endings.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we are better hung (than men). The clitoris is more powerful than the penis even with the balls thrown in," Amma said.
The 90-minute show used comedy and monologues to address female circumcision and female genital mutilation.
Amma said the reasons for female circumcision and female genital mutilation vary from it being a tradition to it being a requirement for marriage.
Until 1948, she said, female circumcision was used in the United States to cure masturbation.
Female circumcision and female genital mutilation is still practiced in countries such as Kenya, Liberia, Egypt and Indonesia, Amma said.
She said there are three types of circumcision. Sunna is the removal of the tip of the clitoris. Clitoridectomy is the removal of the clitoris, the labia and infibulation, which is a clitoridectomy followed by the sewing of the vulva.
"It is very difficult to talk about. I try to laugh to cope," Amma said.
Growing up in Africa, Amma said she wanted to participate in cultural traditions, but didn't fully understand what those were.
At the age of 9, Amma had her clitoris removed, with no anesthesia.
"I had no idea what happened to me until I came to America and watched a National Geographic special. I went to the bathroom and looked. I had no clitoris. I could have died, but didn't," she said.
Two million children are at risk each year from female genital mutilation and 130 million women have been circumcised worldwide, Amma said.
She said females who go through the procedure can bleed to death, have tissues that don't heal, irritation and painful itching.
"Every so often the wound splits open. When the pain goes away I yell, 'Freedom.' It is a freedom that everyone should enjoy," she said.
Amma said the only way to eradicate female circumcision and female genital mutilation is through education.
"If we are going to make a change, it has to start in the home. Down there needs to become a positive place. The clitoris is not a horrible thing," she said.
Sociology student Zena Terry said she thought the comedy show was informative as well as entertaining.
"She was so funny. She is such a strong person to talk about her experience. I knew it was part of the culture. That is why it is important to educate and not ostracize," Terry said.
High school freshman Nicole Malone also said she thought the show was educational.
"It was great how she worked in humor to help us understand the seriousness of the issue," Malone said.
Amma said women are constantly trying to alter their bodies, from silicon implants and female hygiene products to unnecessary cesarean sections and hysterectomies.
"Women pay $200 a month to make it smell like a Martha Stewart rose garden," she said.
Amma said women should look at their bodies globally, not individually.
"We are perfect the way we are. We should not add or subtract anything," she said.
