Banning Circumcision

This looks like it might get ugly.



An anti-circumcision group in San Francisco has collected and submitted 12,000 signatures (about 5,000 more than the required minimum) in order to get an initiative on a November ballot to ban circumcisions in the city. If it passes, the maximum penalty will be up to a year in jail and a $1000 fine. Then again, if you want to circumcise someone over 18, be my guest.

Obviously, all the right Jewish groups have come out against this and I’m sure they are going to campaign hard to not let this bill pass. My bigger question is, and I have literally no expertise in the field of law, but will this bill hold up in court?

I mean, let’s say it passes. You can be sure that people, Jews and Muslims alike, will challenge it in court as an affront on the freedom to practice religion. But then again, if someone can challenge that circumcision is cruel, they might have a valid argument in court.

Can anyone smarter than me provide a little insight into this?

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