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J. Steven Svoboda | |
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| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Human rights attorney |
J. Steven Svoboda is a patent lawyer who has been an attorney since 1991. Svoboda is the founder of the California-based organization, Attorneys for the Rights of the Child. As an attorney, Svoboda is involved in educating, writing, and working with the United Nations on behalf of genital integrity issues. He also works as a patent lawyer.
Svoboda graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1991. Previously, he received a bachelor's degree in Physics and English from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), receiving awards as an Outstanding Student in each of his two majors as well as being one of five Outstanding Seniors chosen from his undergraduate class. He then received a master's degree in Physics from the University of California at Berkeley. [1]
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Svoboda has been working as a full-time patent lawyer since May 2004. His first two patents became two of the core patents behind GPS navigation and Yelp. Svoboda founded Attorneys for the Rights of the Child in 1997. [1] Currently in addition to serving as Executive Director of ARC, he works as a patent lawyer for his own law firm as well as for a prominent Chicago-based law firm and practices human rights law in Richmond, California. Steven obtained 46 patents for Fetch Robotics, which Zebra Robotics purchased for $305 million in July 2021.
Steven has been a social crusader since an early age. He founded ARC in 1997 at the suggestion of Tim Hammond of NOHARMM. He went to law school to be a human rights lawyer, training in human rights work in three trips to Guatemala, work that included visiting morgues to examine corpses for signs of human rights violations and confronting army generals over military violations.
Steven co-led an international team (the International NGO Council on Genital Autonomy or INGOCGA) that in March 2022 completed a five-year project by producing a "core report" on human rights that is posted on the ARC and INGOCGA websites for adaptation for future UN submissions by local activists throughout the world, based on the particular protections and/or violations of genital autonomy occurring in their individual countries. Steven also drafted an “intervention” (a written submission) from INGOCGA as a third party non-governmental organization to the UN’s Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in a Finnish case involving a parental dispute about circumcising their child.
In October 2013, Steven debated the AAP’s Dr. Michael Brady at the Twentieth Annual Thomas A. Pitts Lectureship in Medical Ethics, held at the Medical University of South Carolina pursuant to a conference titled, “Ethical and Legal Issues in Pediatrics. Steven proved that activists know the science far better than the Task Force and Brady found himself unable after hearing Svoboda’s five-minute presentation in the seminar to rebut a single one of our arguments. As they each personally told Svoboda, two of the five physician presenters who are not AAP Task Force members were completely convinced by our arguments and went from being pretty strongly pro-circumcision prior to the event to coming to oppose the procedure based on our arguments. The Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics published the paper by Svoboda and coauthors Bob Van Howe, Peter Adler, which is the longest article Svoboda has ever published and which is already regarded as comprehensive, persuasive, and “groundbreaking.”
In July and August 2001, Steven and ARC organized a team that traveled to Geneva on behalf of ARC to consult with the United Nations’ (UN’s) Sub-Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, making oral and written submissions, the latter of which became part of the official UN record and the first document ever accepted by the UN focusing on male circumcision.
Steven has presented at twelve consecutive international symposia on genital autonomy and children’s rights, starting in 1996 in Lausanne, Switzerland, with the most recent one held in August 2022 in Atlanta. His presentations were published as papers in all eight of the symposium conference proceeding books published by Plenum/Kluwer. One of Steven’s and ARC’s proudest accomplishments is publication, since 2000, of 39 issues of our free newsletter, which strives to be more or less a newspaper for intactivism. Our newsletter is carried by all three of the top content providers that electronically provide journals to libraries throughout the world.
Steven was deeply honored after the sad passing in June 2011 of his dear friend, the late, great activist Van Lewis, to be invited to deliver a memorial speech in Van’s honor at Van’s memorial service in Tallahassee. Many activists contributed to Steven’s memorial talk. Both in his writing and in his activism, Steven cooperates with numerous other people and organizations to leverage ARC’s work to protect genital autonomy. Steven has represented plaintiffs in state and federal lawsuits to protect genital integrity.
Penn & Teller shot a full-length feature on male circumcision broadcast in 2005 in which Steven’s and ARC’s work are prominently featured. Montreal’s Sex TV shot a feature in 2006 in which Steven and ARC also figured prominently. Steven was for several years the genital autonomy correspondent for KKZZ in Ventura, California, appearing on that radio station numerous times. Steven discusses the movement to promote genital autonomy in Cassie Jaye's excellent 2016 film about the men's movement, "The Red Pill."
In April 2002, Steven received the Human Rights Award for his work with ARC from the International Symposium on Human Rights and Modern Society. ARC’s work has been recognized by Harvard Law School, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Men’s Health Magazine, and numerous other well-known organizations and publications. Steven’s invited 2017 article on circumcision as iatrogenic (doctor-caused) wounding was held one of the ten most cited articles of the year that were published by the American Medical Association Ethics Journal. In November 2014, Steven was named by Intact America as Intactivist of the Month. Steven coauthored a gender studies textbook with Dr. Warren Farrell and Dr. James Sterba, published in 2008 by Oxford University Press and entitled, Does Feminism Discriminate Against Men?: A Debate. Steven served for over a quarter-century as Public Relations Director and Board Member of the National Coalition of Free Men (NCFM), the world’s largest and oldest organization promoting genuine gender equity.
In 2020-2021, Steven was one of three team members representing the plaintiff National Coalition for Men (NCFM) in a lawsuit in which NCFM challenged male-only draft registration as an unconstitutional violation of the rights of both women and men. In this case, NCFM was represented by the ACLU Women's Rights Project, Ruth Bader Ginsberg's employer prior to her joining the Supreme Court. (The ACLU Women's Rights Project took over the case after the tragic assassination of NCFM Vice-President and star litigator Marc Angelucci.) Steven did extensive work on the certiorari petition that asked the Supreme Court to hear the case. The request for certiorari was ultimately denied, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh playing a lead role in the denial of certiorari.
His publications include 1. “Protection of Male and Female Sexed Children from Genital Cutting: Making Sense of Recent Legal Developments,” Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics [forthcoming n 2024]; 2. "Genital Modifications in Children: When May Clinicians Ethically Proceed?," with other members of the Brussels Collaboration on Bodily Integrity, American Journal of Bioethics [forthcoming in 2024]; 3.“When the Political Becomes Personal: Circumcision as a Cause and as a Parental Decision,” Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics,” Summer 2023; 4. “Medically Unnecessary Genital Cutting and the Rights of the Child: Moving Toward Consensus,” with other members of the Brussels Collaboration on Bodily Integrity, The American Journal of Bioethics, June 2019; 5. “Circumcision Registry Promotes Precise Research and Fosters Informed Parental Decisions,” BMC Medical Ethics, June 2019; 6. “Is Circumcision Unethical and Unlawful? A response to Morris et al.,” with Peter W. Adler and Robert S. Van Howe, Journal of Medical Law and Ethics, May 2019; 7. “Non-therapeutic Circumcision of Minors: A Form of Iatrogenic Injury that Conflicts with Medical Ethics,” American Medical Association Journal of Ethics, August 2017; 8. “Newborn Male Circumcision is Unethical and should be Illegal,” with Peter Adler and Robert S. Van Howe, Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics, Summer 2016; 9. “Circumcision of Male Infants as a Human Rights Violation,” Journal of Medical Ethics, July 2013; 10. “Out of step: fatal flaws in the latest AAP policy report on neonatal circumcision,” with Robert S. Van Howe, Journal of Medical Ethics, July 2013; 11. “Tortured Bodies, Tortured Minds, Informed Consent as a Legal Fiction Inapplicable to Male Circumcision,” in The Rights of the Child: Ensuring Every Child's Fundamental Right to Body Ownership and Protection from Medical, Cultural, and Religious Infringements (G.C. Denniston et al., eds., Springer, 2012); 12. “Promoting Genital Autonomy by Exploring Commonalities Between Male, Female, Intersex, and Cosmetic Female Genital Cutting,” Global Discourse, Summer 2012; 13. “A Treatise from the Trenches: Why Are Circumcision Lawsuits So Hard to Win?” in Circumcision and Human Rights (G.C. Denniston et al., eds. Springer, 2008); 14. “A Rose by any other Name: Rethinking the Similarities and Differences between Male and Female Genital Cutting," with Robert Darby, Ph.D., Medical Anthropology Quarterly, Volume 21, Number 3 (September 2007), pp. 301-323; 15. “Gender Equity and Genital Integrity,” in Bodily Integrity and the Politics of Circumcision: Culture, Controversy, and Change (G.C. Denniston et al., eds., Plenum/Kluwer, 2006); 16. “Educating the United Nations about Male Circumcision,” in Flesh and Blood: Perspectives on the Problem of Circumcision in Contemporary Society (G.C. Denniston et al., eds., Plenum/Kluwer, 2003); 17. "The Limits of the Law: Comparative Analysis of Legal and Extralegal Methods to Control Child Body Mutilation Practices,” in Understanding Circumcision: A Multidisciplinary Approach to a Multidimensional Problem (G.C. Denniston et al., eds., Plenum/Kluwer, 2001); 18. "Prophylactic Interventions on Children: Balancing Human Rights with Public Health," with Frederick M. Hodges and Robert S. Van Howe, Journal of Medical Ethics, October 2001; and 19. "Informed Consent for Neonatal Circumcision: An Ethical and Legal Conundrum," with Robert S. Van Howe and James G. Dwyer, Journal of Contemporary Health Law and Policy, Winter 2000.
Steven coauthored a gender studies textbook with Dr. Warren Farrell and Dr. James Sterba, published in 2008 by Oxford University Press and entitled, Does Feminism Discriminate Against Men?: A Debate. Steven served for over a quarter-century as Public Relations Director and Board Member of the National Coalition of Free Men (NCFM), the world’s largest and oldest organization promoting genuine gender equity. In 2020-2021, he co-authored a brief to the United States Supreme Court that nearly resulted in the Supreme Court hearing a challenge to male-only draft registration as unconstitutional sex discrimination against both men and women. Steven is a proud husband of a Bay Area corporate consultant and a proud father of two children, born in 2002 and 2005.
Laws restricting, regulating, or banning circumcision, some dating back to ancient times, have been enacted in many countries and communities. In modern states, circumcision is generally presumed to be legal, but laws pertaining to assault or child custody have been applied in cases involving circumcision. In the case of non-therapeutic circumcision of children, proponents of laws in favor of the procedure often point to the rights of the parents or practitioners, namely the right of freedom of religion. Those against the procedure point to the boy's right of freedom from religion. In several court cases, judges have pointed to the irreversible nature of the act, the grievous harm to the boy's body, and the right to self-determination, and bodily integrity.
Phimosis is a condition in which the foreskin of the penis cannot stretch to allow it to be pulled back past the glans. A balloon-like swelling under the foreskin may occur with urination. In teenagers and adults, it may result in pain during an erection, but is otherwise not painful. Those affected are at greater risk of inflammation of the glans, known as balanitis, and other complications.
Medical ethics is an applied branch of ethics which analyzes the practice of clinical medicine and related scientific research. Medical ethics is based on a set of values that professionals can refer to in the case of any confusion or conflict. These values include the respect for autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, and justice. Such tenets may allow doctors, care providers, and families to create a treatment plan and work towards the same common goal. It is important to note that these four values are not ranked in order of importance or relevance and that they all encompass values pertaining to medical ethics. However, a conflict may arise leading to the need for hierarchy in an ethical system, such that some moral elements overrule others with the purpose of applying the best moral judgement to a difficult medical situation. Medical ethics is particularly relevant in decisions regarding involuntary treatment and involuntary commitment.
Male circumcision has been a subject of controversy for a number of reasons including religious, ethical, sexual, and medical.
The history of intersex surgery is intertwined with the development of the specialities of pediatric surgery, pediatric urology, and pediatric endocrinology, with our increasingly refined understanding of sexual differentiation, with the development of political advocacy groups united by a human qualified analysis, and in the last decade by doubts as to efficacy, and controversy over when and even whether some procedures should be performed.
Male circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin (prepuce) from the human penis.
The Ashley Montagu Resolution refers to the petition to the World Court to end the genital modification and mutilation of children worldwide.
Govert A. den Hartogh is a Dutch moral, legal and political philosopher. He studied theology in Kampen and philosophy in Leiden and Oxford. He received his PhD in philosophy in 1985 from the University of Amsterdam. From 1974 on he worked at the University of Amsterdam as assistant and associate professor of ethics and jurisprudence in the Philosophy Department and the Faculty of Law, as an extra-ordinary professor of medical ethics in the Faculty of Medicine, and as a full professor of ethics and its history in the Philosophy Department. In 1992 he took the initiative of founding the Netherlands School for Research in Practical Philosophy, together with Robert Heeger and Bert Musschenga, and functioned as the school's first director. He retired in 2008. At his retirement his former Ph.D. students published a Festschrift.
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. Topical or locally injected anesthesia is generally used to reduce pain and physiologic stress. Circumcision is generally electively performed, most commonly done as a form of preventive healthcare, as a religious obligation, or as a cultural practice. It is also an option for cases of phimosis, other pathologies that do not resolve with other treatments, and chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs). The procedure is contraindicated in cases of certain genital structure abnormalities or poor general health.
Khitan or Khatna is the Arabic term for circumcision, and the Islamic term for the practice of religious male circumcision in Islamic culture. Male circumcision is widespread in the Muslim world, and accepted as an established practice by all Islamic schools of jurisprudence. It is considered a sign of belonging to the wider Muslim community (Ummah).
Ruth Macklin is an American philosopher and retired professor of bioethics.
A dorsal slit is a single incision along the upper length of the foreskin from the tip to the corona, exposing the glans without removing any tissue. An ancient practice, it has been a traditional custom among a number of peoples, particularly Filipinos and Pacific Islanders, probably for thousands of years.
Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".
Research Action and Information Network for the Bodily Integrity of Women is an international non-governmental organisation working to eliminate female circumcision and female genital mutilation.
Nahid Toubia is a Sudanese surgeon and women's health rights activist, specializing in research into female genital mutilation.
Zwischengeschlecht is a human rights advocacy group campaigning on intersex bodily autonomy issues. The group demonstrates outside medical events where surgical interventions are discussed or performed, engages with the media, and participates in consultations with human rights institutions.
Intersex people in the United Kingdom face significant gaps in legal protections, particularly in protection from non-consensual medical interventions, and protection from discrimination. Actions by intersex civil society organisations aim to eliminate unnecessary medical interventions and harmful practices, promote social acceptance, and equality in line with Council of Europe and United Nations demands. Intersex civil society organisations campaign for greater social acceptance, understanding of issues of bodily autonomy, and recognition of the human rights of intersex people.
Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, hormones, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". Such variations may involve genital ambiguity, and combinations of chromosomal genotype and sexual phenotype other than XY-male and XX-female.
In 2015, Nepal introduced constitutional recognition for "gender and sexual minorities". Despite this, the rights situation of intersex people in Nepal is unclear. Local activists have identified human rights violations, including significant gaps in protection of rights to physical integrity and bodily autonomy, and protection from discrimination. A first national meeting of intersex people look place in early 2016,Organised by First openly Intersex Rights Activist Esan Regmi in Nepal. with support from the UNDP.
Intersex people in Switzerland have no recognition of rights to physical integrity and bodily autonomy, and no specific protections from discrimination on the basis of sex characteristics. In 2012, the Swiss National Advisory Commission on Biomedical Ethics published a report on the medical management of differences of sex development or intersex variations.