The first intensive exploration of the unrecognized psychological and social aspects of this increasingly controversial American cultural practice. Endorsed by dozens of professionals in psychology, psychiatry, child development, pediatrics, obstetrics, childbirth education, sociology and anthropology.
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For circumcised men and expectant parents
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Talk About Circumcision
Our tips can turn discomfort into power
"What's done to children, they will do to society."
"Parents do not know what they are choosing, and physicians do not feel what they are doing."
"In response to circumcision, the baby cries a helpless, panicky, breathless, high-pitched cry!...[or] lapses into a semi-coma. Both of these states...are abnormal states in the newborn."
"Doctors who circumcise are the most resistant to change. They will not admit that they made a critical mistake by amputating an important part of the penis."
"In this case, the old dictum 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it' seems to make good sense."
"A whole life can be shaped by an old trauma, remembered or not."
"If we are to have real peace, we must begin with the children."
"We are interconnected. When a baby boy's sexuality is not safe, no one's sexuality is safe."
NEW: Response to the American Academy of Pediatrics Report on Circumcision
Welcome to CRC
Circumcision Resource Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization with the purpose of informing the public and professionals about the practice of male circumcision. Our mission is to raise awareness and facilitate healing. Since 1991, the Center has been a valuable source of male circumcision information for parents and children's advocates; childbirth educators and allied professionals; medical, mental health, and academic people; Jews; and others.
Our Directors (most are Jewish) and Professional Advisory Board members consist of researchers and clinicians in the fields of medicine, mental health, and social science. Ronald Goldman, Ph.D., is the Executive Director. We are pleased to have participated in over 200 television, radio, magazine, and newspaper interviews and have contributed to many books, periodicals, and newspapers. We also provide consultation, counseling, and referrals and lectures, seminars, and publications.
Attitudes toward circumcision are changing because of new awareness. As a result, there is growing concern about this often misunderstood genital surgery. If you are considering circumcision for a child, please take the time read our information. Your child's physical, sexual, and emotional health depend on your being informed.
Our Perspective
- The arguments in favor of male circumcision are readily available and promoted in American media.
- Because the reasons to question male circumcision are not well known and do not fit into sound bites, they are the focus here.
- Our information is based on a review of medical and psychological
literature and our own research and
experience. - We encourage visitors to seek other sources of information and come to their own conclusions.*
For more discussion of our perspective, please see Cultural and Medical Bias and Why Many Other Sources (Even Reputable Ones) are Misleading.
* The Wikipedia articles on circumcision are controlled by pro-circumcision advocates. Any information that is critical of circumcision is immediately deleted by these advocates. This is a violation of Wikipedia policy that all views shall be represented.
Psychological Factors
Psychological factors affect every aspect of the practice, including who chooses to study circumcision, what questions are studied and what questions are ignored; which studies are approved for publication and which studies are rejected; what circumcision information is communicated to parents and what circumcision information is withheld from parents; what recommendations are made by policy committees and what recommendations are ignored; and what circumcision information is reported in the media and what information is withheld from the public.
SPECIAL ARTICLE How Male Circumcision Harms Women
Learn about the hidden negative psychological and sexual effects of circumcision and how these effects harm women in relationships with men. This article is based on research reports in the medical and psychological literature.
PERSONAL ESSAY Confessions of a Circumcised Man
A revealing account of how color-blindness relates to circumcision, and
recognition of sexual loss leads to a difficult path of
self-discovery.
NEW: A Mother Discovers Her Strength Talking to Her Husband about Circumcision
NEW: A Mother's Story: My Son Cried, "I Want My Foreskin Back!"
What's New
NEW: CRC Response to American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Report on Circumcision
NEW: 38 Leading Non-US Physicians Disagree with AAP Report on Circumcision
NEW: Study: Circumcision Decreases Penile Sensitivity
U.S. Circumcision Rate Reported at 32.5%
As reported in the New York Times, a federal health researcher stated in July, 2010, at the International AIDS Conference that the U.S. circumcision rate had fallen to 32.5 percent in 2009. The researcher works for the Centers for Disease Control. The numbers are based on calculations by SDI Health, a company in Plymouth Meeting, PA, that analyzes health care data.
Bodily Harm: German Court Bans Male Child Circumcision
Huffington Post Article by Ronald Goldman, Ph.D. Receives Over 1400 Comments
Circumcision of Young Boys for Religious and Non-Medical Reasons Ought to be Banned in Sweden, Urged the Swedish Paediatric Society
Study Reports 1/3 of Circumcisions Required Surgical Revisions or Intervention
Circumcision Associated with Adult Difficulty in Identifying and Expressing Feelings and Circumcised Men 4.53 Times More Likely to Use Erectile Dysfunction Drugs
Circumcision Associated with Sexual Difficulties in Men and Women
A new national survey in Denmark, where about 5% of men are circumcised, examined associations of circumcision with a range of sexual measures in both sexes. Circumcised men were more likely to report frequent orgasm difficulties, and women with circumcised spouses more often reported incomplete sexual needs fulfillment and frequent sexual function difficulties overall, notably orgasm difficulties, and painful sexual intercourse.
Colorado to Cease Coverage of Medicaid Circumcisions
Over one-third (18) of all state Medicaid programs do not cover circumcisions. Is your state one of them? Find out.
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