New York lawmakers are launching a campaign to protect young girls and women from the kinds of “virginity” tests the rapper TI forced his daughter to take.
Learn more below…
The rapper’s public image took an enormous hit when he revealed that he cajoled his daughter into taking a medical test to prove that her hymen was still in tact.
Why? To ensure that she was still a virgin.
His admission was met with shock, horror and disgust as many considered it to be a disconcerting invasion of his daughter’s privacy and foolish.
Here’s why…
Now New York legislators are ready to stand up for girls who are subjected to the invasive tests.
CBS reports…
Identical bills filed in the New York State Senate and New York State Assembly seek to ban “licensed medical practitioners from performing or supervising virginity examinations and subjects any medical practitioner who does perform or supervise such performance to professional misconduct penalties as well as possible criminal charges.”
The bills will not ban all medical hymen examinations but will take a stand against any which are used to determine whether or not a female is a virgin.
Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages explains…
These examinations are not only a violation of women’s and girls’ human rights, but in cases of rape can cause additional pain and mimic the original act of sexual violence, leading to re-experience, re-traumatization and re-victimization.
The term ‘virginity’ is not a medical or scientific term. Rather, the concept of ‘virginity’ is a social, cultural and religious construct – one that reflects gender discrimination against women and girls. As a result, the United Nations, along with the World Health Organization, U.N. Women and U.N. Human Rights, called for a global ban on the practice.
The legal move comes after the World Health Organisation condemned the practice.
Hit this link to read its detailed assessment of the barbaric act.