ABOUT INTACT AMERICA
Vision Statement
Intact America envisions a world where children are protected from permanent bodily alteration inflicted on them without their consent, in the name of culture, religion, profit, or parental preference.
Mission Statement
Intact America works to protect babies and children from circumcision and all other forms of medically unnecessary genital alteration, whether carried out for cultural conformity or profit, in medical or non-medical settings.
We seek to achieve our goals through education, advocacy, public policy reform, and the empowerment of our supporters, partners, and volunteers. You can read our Statement of Principles here.
The History of Intact America
Intact America, founded in 2008 thanks to funding from a private donor, is the most recent expression of a movement against infant circumcision that has been active and expanding for decades. Intact America counts among its advisors many long-term Intactivists, as well as many new people who have embraced Intact America’s commitment to protect all babies and children–male and female–from the forced modification of their genitalia.
Intact America operates under the auspices of the Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality, a not-for-profit organization that is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code. Georganne Chapin, a leader in the fight for ethical, cost-effective and high quality health care, is Intact America’s founding executive director. Ms. Chapin holds a BA in anthropology from Barnard College, an MPhil in sociomedical sciences from Columbia University, and a JD from Pace University School of Law. Her "Circumcision Debate" article, published in Hudson Valley Parent magazine, highlights her dedication to the intactivist cause.
About Our Current Campaign
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) are developing public health recommendations for the U.S. on male circumcision, based on flawed African studies that ignore the serious risks of the procedure, such as hemorrhage, infection, surgical mishap, and death.
These organizations have a responsibility to share the truth about public health issues that can affect millions of Americans. That is why Intact America is calling for the CDC and the AAP NOT to recommend circumcision and to formally recognize the risks and harms of newborn male circumcision.
Click here to learn more about our current campaign and to take action.
The following boards have been formed to help promote awareness of children’s rights and help Intact America increase financial and public support for our programs and policies. These boards do not participate in the general management of the organization.
I. Steering Committee
Much of what Intact America has accomplished over the last year and a half is due to the time, energy, and ideas so generously provided by long-time intactivists, volunteers, and supporters, people who have been in favor of ending infant circumcision for decades. Our Steering Committee is currently comprised of several such intactivists, including:
- Daniel H. Bollinger, BA [Founder, International Coalition for Genital Integrity (ICGI)]
- Amber Craig [Director, NOCIRC of NC]
- John D. Geisheker, JD, LLM [Executive Director and General Counsel, Doctors Opposing Circumcision (DOC)]
- Gregory J. Hartley, PE [Director, NOCIRC of PA]
- Marilyn Milos, RN [Founder & Executive Director, National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers (NOCIRC)]
- Mark Reiss, MD [Vice President, DOC]
- David Smith [Director, NORM- UK]
- J. Steven Svoboda, Esq. [Founder and Executive Director, Attorneys for the Rights of the Child (ARC)]
II. Board of Advocates
Intact America's Board of Advocates consists of outspoken advocates and leaders in the arts, media, and entertainment communities who are willing to come forward and stand up for baby boys' rights to bodily integrity. The following individuals currently serve on our Board of Advocates:
- Adrian Colesberry
- Alan Cumming
- Anna Getty
- Bill Irwin
- Paul Joannides
- Soraya Miré
- Peggy O'Mara
- Eliyahu Ungar-Sargon
III. Board of Health Professionals
The Intact America Board of Health Professionals includes physicians, nurses, childbirth professionals, mental health experts, and others in the medical or health field who support Intact America’s principles and agenda. Members of this board may be involved in work that has nothing to do with circumcision, or just a small facet of their professional interests. From having personal conversations with patients on the issue to publishing articles in internationally renowned medical journals, members of the Board of Health Professionals contribute to the cause on a variety of different levels.
- Kenneth J. Baker, MD, FACOG
- Paula Brinkley, MD, MPH, FAAP
- Gloria LeMay [Contributing Editor, Midwifery Today]
- Gillian Longley RN, BSN, MSS
- Christiane Northrup, MD
- Brian O'Donnell, MHS PA-C
- James Pate, MD
- Mark Reiss, MD
- Martha Roth, CNM
- Lauren Shaiova, MD
- Michelle R. Storms, MD
- Sarah E. Strandjord, MD, FAAP
- John W. Travis, MD, MPH
IV. Board of Scholars
The Intact America Board of Scholars includes bioethicists, philosophers, educators, academicians, and authors who support Intact America’s principles and agenda. Members of this board have invested themselves in the issues and philosophies supported by Intact America in a way that ties them into the thought leadership on ending infant circumcision. They may speak out publicly, give lectures, write books, or advocate through academic writing and research.
