If A Court Ordered You To Circumcise Your 4-Year-Old, You’d Do What This Mom Did

surgical-tools-stock-photoWhen it comes to circumcision, you pretty much only get one shot. You either do it when they’re a baby or you leave it alone until they’re old enough to decide for themselves. A Florida couple apparently didn’t get that memo, and now the latest blow has been struck in a ridiculous two-year battle over a little boy’s foreskin.

We’ve written before about Heather Hironimus, the 31-year-old Florida mom of a now four-year-old boy whose circumcision has turned into a horrific battle of wills between Hironimus and her ex, Denis Nebus. The pair had a six-month relationship that resulted in a pregnancy. They welcomed their son into the world in 2010 and have pretty much been in court ever since.

In 2012 — two whole years after the baby’s birth — the parents agreed to have their son circumcised as a part of their separation deal, but when it came time for the procedure, Hironimus flipped out and got an emergency court order to stop the circumcision from happening. Four months ago, the Fourth District Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the father and “imposed circumcision.” Now, according to Raw Story, Hironimus is sitting in jail after basically spending the past three months hiding her son from his father and from authorities to prevent the circumcision.

And on May 14, Broward County officers arrested Hironimus for, as the Philly Voice describes it, ”refusing to sign court-ordered consent forms authorizing the genital cutting of her healthy [four-year-old].” The Voice reports that Hironimus and her son stayed at a domestic violence shelter ”for more than 80 days,” seeking ”refuge from the court-ordered surgery.”

You can hardly blame Hironimus for wanting to do anything she could to stop this pointless circumcision. I am not pro-circumcision when it comes to my own children, but I can understand why some parents choose to go that route with their newborns. Circumcising a four-year-old is a whole different box of rocks.

Not only is the circumcision totally without reason — Nebus stated in court he has no reason for seeking the circumcision outside of “it’s just the normal thing to do” — but it’s also more complicated with an older child. He’ll require anesthesia and will be very much aware of the pain afterwards and healing process. It’s also going to be absurdly difficult to explain to their child why this is happening to him. He’s not an infant. He’s going to want to know what’s going on. At this point, it feels like the child is just a pawn and it’s more about Nebus “winning” than about the kid’s well-being.

Raw Story says Hironimus wants her son to undergo an evaluation to make sure he is mentally and emotionally ready to undergo the procedure, but a judge denied her request. Now she’s just sitting in jail, helpless to protect her son. The whole situation is disgusting. If you didn’t circumcise the kid at birth, toddlerhood is certainly not the time to change your mind. It’s his body and his choice, and forcing a circumcision on your almost-kindergartner for no reason makes you, well, kind of a dick.

(Photo: tomasworks / iStock / Getty Images Plus)

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