Foreskin Man
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''Foreskin Man'' is a
comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
created by Matthew Hess to protest against
circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. T ...
. The comic centers on Foreskin Man, a superhero who saves babies from being circumcised and fights their would-be circumcisers. ''Foreskin Man'' was created by Matthew Hess, the author of a proposed bill to ban medically unnecessary circumcisions of minors, during a 2010 to 2011 campaign to ban this procedure in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. The comic received criticism from advocates on both sides of the circumcision debate for its alleged use of
anti-Semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
imagery.


Background

In 2010, intactivists (activists against infant circumcision) began an initiative to put a measure on San Francisco's November 2011 ballot that would ban all non-medically necessary circumcisions of minors. The effort was spearheaded by intactivist group Bay Area Intactivists, which used a bill whose text was written by Matthew Hess, the founder of San Diego–based intactivist website MGMbill.org (MGM being an acronym for "male genital mutilation", a term used by some intactivists to denounce circumcision). Hess also published ''Foreskin Man'', a comic about a superhero who fights circumcisers and saves babies from them. In the comic, which currently has seven issues, superhero Foreskin Man battles enemies and saves boys from circumcisions in a variety of situations including hospital circumcisions, religious circumcisions, and tribal circumcisions.


Plot

Foreskin Man's alter ego is Miles Hastwick, a former corporate scientist now curator of the ''Museum of Genital Integrity''. He is adamantly against the practice of circumcision. In the first issue, Hastwick comes up with the alter ego of Foreskin Man to fight against practitioners of circumcision and "the pro-circumcision lobby," whom he feels have gained too much power through "all of the well connected doctors and lawyers." In the second issue, Foreskin Man encounters and fights a "Monster Mohel". In the third issue of the comic, he teams up with a female heroine, dubbed "Vulva Girl," who fights to oppose
female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM) (also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision) is the cutting or removal of some or all of the vulva for non-medical reasons. Prevalence of female ge ...
. Together, they travel to
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
to stop tribal circumcisions. In the fourth issue, he travels to
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
to prevent the teenage son of a belly dancer from receiving an Islamic circumcision. The fifth issue shows him battling against the head of a company that collects foreskins for use in cosmetics. Finally, in the sixth issue, he goes to the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
to disrupt a tuli rite.


Other media

In 2011, Matthew Hess released the
dance-pop Dance-pop is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit ra ...
single "Foreskin Man", which was sung by a woman credited as Vulva Girl. The song is referenced in issue six of the comics, where it serves as the
ringtone A ringtone is the sound made by a telephone to indicate an incoming telephone call. Originally referring to the sound of electromechanical striking of bells or gongs, the term refers to any sound by any device alerting of an incoming call. On p ...
of Malaya Luansing, one of Hastwick's employees. Additionally, Hess has produced Foreskin Man trading cards and T-shirts.


Accusations of anti-semitism

In the second issue of the comic, Foreskin Man attends a
brit milah The ''brit milah'' (, , ; "Covenant (religion), covenant of circumcision") or ''bris'' (, ) is Religion and circumcision, the ceremony of circumcision in Judaism and Samaritanism, during which the foreskin is surgically removed. According to t ...
and battles a "Monster
Mohel A ( , Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazi pronunciation , plural: , , "circumciser") is a Jewish man trained in the practice of , the "covenant of male circumcision". A woman who is trained in the practice is referred to as a ''mohelet'' (plural: ''mo ...
". The portrayal of Jews in the series as nebbish, predatory, and feminine directly contrasts with the portrayal of Foreskin Man as blond, blue-eyed, muscled, and masculine. This imagery drew criticism from both sides of the circumcision debate. Abby Porth of the Jewish Community Relations Council called the comic "deeply alarming" and pointed out that "Monster Mohel" was portrayed in a way that resembled images used by the Nazis in anti-Semitic propaganda. The
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...
of Northern California argued in an
amicus brief An amicus curiae (; ) is an individual or organization that is not a party to a legal case, but that is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. Whether an ''amic ...
against the ban that ''Foreskin Man'' was evidence that the initiative was actually motivated by anti-Semitism. Nancy Appel of the Anti-Defamation League stated that the comic had "polarized and isolated, and that people who may have been willing to hear their side are just disgusted". In addition to being denounced by defenders of circumcision, ''Foreskin Man'' was also criticized by activists against the practice. Lloyd Schofield, the leader of the initiative to place the circumcision ban on the ballot, called the comic "a distraction at best", described it as "inflammatory and 180 degrees different from the direction we want to go in", and had wanted Hess to remove it from MGMBill.org. In response to criticism, Hess asserted that his comic did not focus on Judaism; rather, it dealt with a variety of settings and circumcisers including circumcisions performed by doctors, religious circumcisions, and tribal circumcisions. When questioned about Foreskin Man's coloring, Hess responded that "Foreskin Man’s blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin reflects my own German heritage. I see absolutely no reason to be ashamed of that."


References

{{reflist American comic strips Circumcision debate Comics about politics Political satire comics American political satire Satirical comics Jewish-related comics Comics critical of religion Religious controversies in comics Superhero comics 2011 comics debuts