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+--- Thread: The issue is NOT consent (/Thread-The-issue-is-NOT-consent)
The issue is NOT consent - Visions - 08-15-2026
The majority of people who are actively opposing the institution of circumcision are fighting it through the lens of "this was done without my consent and that's why I'm angry". I am going to explain why attacking circumcision from that position is incredibly futile and actually extremely bad for our cause.
Firstly, even as much as implying that the idea of consent being tied to this social justice issue implies that circumcision is okay. No, genital mutilation is indeed not okay. Not at all. Point blank period. Full stop. The intactivist community needs to realize that it is not the consent we are furious about. We are angry that sensitive, important sexual tissue was ripped from our bodies, consent irrelevant.
Ask yourself, would you have genitally mutilated yourself at some point in your life had your penis not been doctored? Obviously not. So why have we been, since intactivism's inception, approaching the issue from the lens of consent? Consent is NOT the issue. Controlling male sexuality combined with late stage capitalism is the issue.
To play devil's advocate for a moment, while growing up I was vehemently opposed to circumcision and my primary concern was consent for the better part of my life. It was not until recently that I had a revelation that it wasn't the consent I was angry about. I would have never willingly mutilated my penis. I actually WANT a foreskin. I would never consent to such a decision. Ever.
Far too many posts I see online continue to attack this issue from the lens of consent and it's just so backwards and horrible for our movement. Female circumcision opponents do not attack that issue by saying "You took away her right to choose!" No, they call it out for what it is: genital mutilation that serves no medical purpose and is purely done to control sexuality. Guess what? Male circumcision is the exact same.
Why can the majority of people in intactivism not realize this? Why did it take ME so long? Is it the cultural brainwash? The extensive propaganda? Let's set the record straight: Circumcision is NOT a medical procedure and never will be. It is a branding tool and ancient blood sacrifice that managed to survive for thousands of years because of misandry, misinformation, shame, greed, and oppression. It is NOT a practice that would ever exist in a sane world that valued men. It is NOT going to end until we call it out for what it is and stop saying we are sad and angry and hopeless because our "consent" was ignored.