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"Intactivist" Fight Takes Anti-Semitic Turn With New Comic Book
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jun 4, 2011
Modified Jun 4, 2011
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jun 4, 2011
Modified Jun 4, 2011
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As we learned this spring, "intactivism" is the belief in the right of baby boys to keep their foreskins intact. And in San Fransisco, there's a particularly polarizing movement to legally ban circumcision altogether, a fight which has started to turn ugly. As part of the campaign to ban the practice through ballot initiatives, the group MGMBill has created a series of online comic books featuring "Foreskin Man" fighting the "Monster Mohel." How could anyone possibly have a problem with that? "'Foreskin Man,' with its grotesque anti-Semitic imagery and themes, reaches a new low and is disrespectful and deeply offensive," said Nancy J. Appel, Anti-Defamation League Associate Regional Director.
"Foreskin Man" was the creation of Matthew Hess, the president of the Male Genital Mutilation Bill group. You can follow along with all of the adventures of Dr. Mutilator and Nurse Jenny Sparklett here. Appel said the imagery in the comic, including pictures of the Mohel waving bloody scissors over a screaming baby, invokes the "age-old anti-Semitic canards" such as blood libel, the false accusation that Jews murder Christian children to use their blood in religious rituals (also, the accusation that Sarah Palin might use when she's feeling particularly hated).
Here's the, uh, colorful description of the "Monster Mohel" on the site: "Nothing excites Monster Mohel more than cutting into the penile flesh of an eight-day-old boy. And after the glorified brit milah is complete, the delicious metzitzah b'peh provides the icing on the cake. Inactivists have been pressuring Monster Mohel to retire, but that will never happen. They will have to pry the scissors from his cold, dead hands." FYI: Metzizah b'peh is a tradition where the mohel sucks blood from the circumcision wound; a sterilized glass tube is used for it however, so the icing comment really is just gross. But at least he wasn't bitten by a radioactive Yarmulke!
Ultimately, Appel says that the ADL's objections aren't about the issue of circumcision, but rather the way the group has decided to depict their argument: "We would have hoped those backing the anti-circumcision effort in San Francisco would know better than to use this type of anti-Semitic imagery to advance their cause. No matter what one's personal opinions of male circumcision, it is irresponsible to use stereotypical caricatures of religious Jews to promote the anti-circumcision agenda." But at least MGMBill can take comfort in knowing that their comic book has reached the crucial 8-12 year old crowd, inspiring them to vote in the ballot initiative next November. No holes in that plan!
Tagged
circumcision
comic books
foreskin man
intactivist
monster mohel
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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