Petitions for circumcision ban being circulated in San Francisco

San Francisco is dominated by people who believe that government should stay out of the bedroom. But Lloyd Schofield, a 58 year-old resident of the City by the Bay wants to place municipal government inside boys' pants and diapers. He is distributing petitions to put an initiative on the ballot that will ban circumcision for boys under 18--with no exceptions made for religious purposes. Brit milah, also called a bris, is performed on Jewish baby boys eight days after their birth--the foreskin is removed by a rabbi. Many Muslims also cite religious reasons for circumcising males.

This has nothing to do with the federal ban on so-called female circumcision, which involves the cutting off of a girl's clitoris in a cruel effort to deny her sexual pleasure. It is a common practice among Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa. But Schofield cites that law as illegal, claiming it violates the equal protection clause of the US Constitution.

If male circumcision is banned in San Francisco, the law is not expected to stand, as it obviously runs counter to the freedom of religion clause in the Bill of Rights.

Yes, Schofield has a web site devoted to his effort.

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