Chest binding could be child abuse, say police amid ‘mounting horror’ at Mermaids trans charity
by Hayley Dixon, Telegraph:
Chest binding is potential child abuse, the Metropolitan Police has said, as concerns are raised over the actions of a trans charity.
Scotland Yard has said that if police receive reports of a child using a breast binder, which is used to flatten the chest, officers will investigate it along with social services.
It comes after an investigation by The Telegraph found that Mermaids has been discreetly sending binders to children as young as 13 and 14 whose parents will not let them use one.
On its website, the Metropolitan Police describes the offence of “breast ironing (also called breast flattening)”, which is a form of female genital mutilation most commonly practiced in Cameroon.
The force describes it as “child abuse” and says that “sometimes, an elastic belt, or binder, is used to stop them from growing”.
The description led to questions over how the practice differs from the use of binders on children who believe that they are trans.
Read here (£)
Read also: Trans4whonow? Nottingham’s group for ‘trans children’: where’s the safeguarding? by Lily Moffat. MUST READ
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
