IA: Tell the New York Times that circumsicion does not prevent the spread of HIV

From an Intact America alert:

This past Monday, the New York Times published an article claiming that mass-circumcision efforts are “one of the most promising, proven methods for preventing HIV in Africa”—and this is simply not true. Study after study shows that circumcision does not prevent the spread of HIV, and in fact increases the risk, because circumcised men think they are safe, and don’t use condoms.

The most offensive part of the article, however, is this quote from Robert Bailey, an epidemiologist at the University of Illinois at Chicago who helped design Kenya’s circumcision efforts (that country’s 330,000 circumcisions so far are just a third of the government’s goal). “We’re hacking away at it every month,” Dr. Bailey said. “Those foreskins are flying.”

It seems that these doctors, who have built their careers from these mass-circumcision programs, have forgotten we’re talking about human beings with normal, functional, important body parts. “Hacking?” Really?

Unfortunately the article, which is replete with misinformation, is not accepting comments. So we’re asking you to write to the New York Times. Tell this major newspaper what you think about the science and the ethics of this article. Write your own letter, or—if you wish—you can use some of the points here:

• Nowhere in this article is it mentioned that most of the world is intact, and that the foreskin is a useful and valuable body part that most adult men do not want to give up.
• The African “studies” on circumcision have not been replicated anywhere in the developed world, because they would be considered highly unethical.
• Circumcision does not prevent the spread of HIV; the American experience proves that.
• A mass surgical campaign is a terrible use of public health resources in countries with under-developed health care systems and a lack of food and clean water
• Coercing men into giving up a natural and important body part with partial or false information is the worst kind of medical imperialism.
• The statements by Dr. Bailey reveal the cultural insensitivity and callousness of the scientists and researchers who are building their careers on this shameful campaign.
• ...or anything else you would like to say.

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Ed. note: Ways to contact the NYT are found here. It seems to me the most appropriate email address to use is nytnews-at-nytimes.com or if you hope to get a letter to the editor published, information about that is here.