General

Another Video Text about Breast Ironing in Cameroon

Hi all,

what you need to understand breast flattening is empathy.
Try to understand what breast flattening means to the young victims.
And then share our videos with your friends.

The solution is DEBATING…. DISCUSSING…. UNDERSTANDING the problem, trying to develop such an EMPATHY to start to talk about it, to help women-victims.

Thank you so much for sharing the videos and for sending us your kind comments.

Dr. phil. Milena Rampoldi – ProMosaik e.V.

———

Breast ironing
is a widespread practice in Cameroon, according to statistics from the United
Nations, one out of every four girls is a victim of the act.

This 25
year old lady is a […] second-handed […]. She had her breast ironed at the
age of 15.
“When
I was 15, you know, I went for holidays and when I came back to my mom I had
already developed breasts. So, my mother was like “We cannot keep this
because you are still to young to have it now.” So she said we were going
to iron the breast.
“The
girl is still too young to carry the breasts. We do not want the little girls
to have breasts.”
“At
that time I couldn’t make decisions for myself. She used a grinding stone; she
warmed it on the fire and pressed the breast with it. It was very painful
because the stone is hot, so it actually […] the breast you know.”
“So I
am doing this because this girl developed breasts sooner than normal, so
according to our tradition we do this to make them stop growing”
“Sit
here, move your hands” (girl screaming)
Source: cnn.com
“It
was painful, but you know, I had just to do it because my mother wanted it that
way. I actually […] the breast you know, but she said it was for my own good.
When the breast got back it was too big for me to carry.”
32 year old
Glory is a victim of breast ironing. She later enlarged her breast by causing a
tagpole bite her nipples.
“A
tadpole was made to sting my nipples so they could develop. I did the first
time and saw a little change. I did it again and so I went for a bigger tadpole
and made it bite my nipple. My breasts became too big, since I couldn’t afford
a bra, fig tree leaves that had been warmed on hot fire.”
 
Source: asafeworldforwomen.com