This, to me, is a matter of religious liberty. If we base our view that female circumcision should be prohibited because it is cruel, how then do you defend the practice of male circumcision? There are many ritual customs within a particular religion that seem cruel or bizarre to those outside that religious system. Is there an universal principle that can be created to determine what religious practices are permitted or not? Who decides those principles? I do not support female “nicks” or circumcision, and I am horrified by the practice; however, I have to look at it from a more legal or philosophical reference.
The same way we don’t permit settee.