Has the Beauty Myth Gone to Far, Labiaplasty Fad or Self Mutilation?
Has the beauty myth gone too far? In today's culture, I think it has. After recently reading about female genital mutilation practices in Africa and other Muslin countries, it seems that women in our own culture are doing something that is not far akin to mutilating themselves voluntarily. Of course, the FGM practices are far more extensive and the repercussions far more harmful to the woman but that does not mean that when a young woman feels her genitalia does not look normal and decides to have her labia lips essentially cut off that it is not as serious. It seems that way to me. I have recently become aware of the growing fad of what is commonly called, labiaplasty and vaginoplasty. Since 2016 there has been a 39% increase in labiaplasty surgeries. which can roughly be estimated at more than 12,000 women. This fact still astonishes me and saddens me at the same time. Recent research done by Refinery 29 who took a poll of 3,670 women stated that 43% of t...