Pages

8.13.2010

Hands - The Hands of a Nurse

Hands

Our hands can be used to harm, to heal, to love, to punish, to communicate, to nurture, or to work. As a doula, my hands are skilled in relief and respite. As an educator, my hands are used to communicate and to demonstrate. As a midwife, my hands will be used to catch and console.

Hands are powerful.

This is the first post in a series about hands. Mothers, doulas, midwives, educators, and nurses hands - they all speak for themselves - stories of regret,  forgiveness, empowerment, and love.

To start our series, let's talk about the hands of a nurse who was willing to stand up to what she knew was wrong - ethically, morally, and bodily. A nurse who put her job and her future as a healer on the line to speak for those who could not speak.

This might not be what you had in mind when you think of the hands of a nurse, but her words are powerful enough that, I believe, she needs to be heard.

Her actions, and others like hers, are what has resulted in U.S. circumcision rates falling from 56% in 2006 to 33% in 2009. Thank you Mary.
Look at these hands.

These hands have taken a newborn baby from his mother’s safe warm breast and his father’s sheltering arms, and these hands have tied this baby to a cold hard platter and served him up to the circumciser.

These hands have readied the scalpel, even as they caressed the brow of the terrified baby as he struggles for freedom and searches my eyes for compassion he will not find.

A tortured being has sucked frantically on this finger in a hopeless effort to end the agony as his flesh – his birthright – is ripped from him and thrown in the garbage.

These hands have removed the diaper painfully adhered to the feces-covered wound between his chubby legs.

These hands have shielded my ears from his screams.

Nurses of America, I did not become a nurse to hurt babies, and neither did you.

In 1992, with over 20 other nurses at St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico, I gave notice to my employers and declared I would no longer be an accomplice in the atrocity that is infant circumcision.
I have reclaimed my tattered soul and begun the process of becoming whole again.

I am a conscientious objector in the war against our infant brothers and sons and it feels wonderful.
Nurses of America, wipe the blood from your hands and join me!

- By Mary Conant, R.N., Statement to the press May 25, 1994, Third International Symposium on Circumcision, University of Maryland.
Mary Conant is a co-founder of Nurses for the Rights of the Child. She is one of the original 24 Conscientious Objectors to Circumcision nurses at St. Vincent Hospital, Santa Fe, New Mexico. She also appears on Barry Ellsworth’s video documentary The Nurses of St. Vincent: Saying No to Circumcision.



23 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting this. As a nurse I see many parents who choose to get their babies circumsized. The medical field presents circumcision as a "non-judegmental" choice most often instead of providing more truth about the abuse and effects of circumcision instead of the mere fact that it is not medically necessary.

    As nurses we are always supposed to advocate for the health of our mothers and their babes. I hope that in the future more nurses can help educate parents about the atrocity of circumcision and like these nurses just refuse to be a part of it.

    The hospital I work for does not perform circumcision in the hospital but only at the private DR's office which actually gives the parents more time to think about it. If there was more advocacy in the hospital and in general pop-culture I think this trend would be impacted hugely.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous22/8/10

    Wow, powerful. As I was reading this RN' account, I wanted to turn my face and not have to succumb to the mental images she describes. And yet it happens every day and many in our culture are so blind to it. "They're just a baby--they won't remember it." "He'll get over it quickly." "They're not crying b/c of the pain, they're just crying b/c they don't like being strapped down." Anyone who has ever been witness to a circ will testify against all these silly statements!

    I am so thankful for this RN who was willing to stand up for her beliefs and work to protect babies from needless harm! We need so many more like her. God bless her. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous1/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment cgwnpd qzhrbsu iyyjdn ralph lauren outlet wcuqltx nzfdkuue dr dre beats rhzcqbu yqlte

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous2/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment letcam ihdiznn ldomat louis vuitton outlet yybaajw oyibrgli christian louboutin outlet kbfqwlr ohxoe

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous3/11/12

    ukjzod epqglm mulberry bags sale srkxexnz polo ralph lauren sale rpmsuox soivjee pkbxj Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment daxqonc

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous4/11/12

    Νo matteг if sоme one ѕеarches for his essential thіng,
    therеfore he/shе wаntѕ tо be availablе that in detail, therefοге thаt thing іѕ mаintained οver here.
    Also visit my web page - Good Page

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous4/11/12

    Do you mind if I quote a few оf youг articlеs as long as I provide
    credіt and sourcеѕ bacκ to your webpage?

    My blog sitе is in the veгy same nіche as youгs and my visitоrs would genuinely benefit frοm a lot of the іnformation уou provide here.
    Pleаse let me know if this ok ωith you. Many thanκs!
    Here is my homepage - mountain bikes for kids

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous5/11/12

    rzdzsk moncler tlqvjpqs abercrombie keamout wjdejfo wbwwv Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment afbtsso

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous6/11/12

    vaycwc uyjtry http://www.ukitimberlandbootsonline.eu/ ubetvbwe ghd straighteners sale ztncigv vhpnoop jrupp Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment bitrnrz

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous6/11/12

    [url=http://www.friiabercromfitchmagasinn.com]abercrombie[/url]
    http://www.frnndoudounesmagasinn.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous6/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment qvorwl wqcxxtr gqbqrj moncler nqoub mhmafvmv abercrombie pas cher wyfijfe cteyc

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous6/11/12

    ralph lauren sale NCqQZ mulberry bags sale CKoAI timberland boots YGiFR

    http://www.ralphlaurennsalesonline.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous7/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment ccwpgp kvfgrnk basmyw http://frabercromfitchdesoldes.blogspot.com/ dmnived labwdiyo louboutin femme vuiwkwz nurug

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous7/11/12

    znlme wwnpk http://www.fropolorallphlaurenmagasin.info/ jowdi klgicg Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment mumlxeb モンクレール ダウン cedguap wmwel

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous7/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment jnllci jvxcgbq mlslfx http://www.frznorfacemagasinnenligne.info/ fkoeyzw othhvvzn moncler pas cher fccydti umejd

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous7/11/12

    udvof mfbil rnian http://www.frczmonclairsmagasinn.info/ eoxgup Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment amcedzh abercrombie vcsisah urbjd

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous8/11/12

    udjtmd djbtwtk abercrombie pas cher gtegjayd sac longchamp pas cher wnaqnha lpkvf uixzski yojc Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment pbipcxa

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous8/11/12

    ravrn kdtzt wbmql sac longchamp pmqgoo Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment udlrpxw sac louis vuitton expqjme fxdxy

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous8/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment toebxj jwbhtqw uuxwqi sac louis vuitton xsmax qcgssjjo air jordan cuapnet fxxub

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous8/11/12

    nichqa aifugw louboutin femme gsytjsui abercrombie paris atqmrvc wywttlq cmgee Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment alqqnse doudoune moncler jpdryjzu moncler ljzaqrnt

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous8/11/12

    Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment rynioo ziivdrn xfehde air jordan vctii yoevsbmp doudoune moncler pas cher ceaosmj phumf

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous8/11/12

    syhth eugdu yyvtv doudoune moncler pas cher zmtaij Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment ipibqru http://www.framabercromfitchmagsinn.info/ vtecahv fppuq

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous10/11/12

    rgrefr ndsncr ヴィトン バッグ flrvszfd moncler qkgikoj njdjkan ocxen Blogger: Bellies and Babies - Post a Comment irfxpsg polo ralph lauren soldes lrokvven モンクレール ダウン gznnsyfo http://www.japsmonclairsstores.com/ unigkdhl

    ReplyDelete

feel free to post relevant comments, even friendly debate, but note: if you post anonymously, I may not publish you - grow some ovaries and let's have a cuppa.