"You try to be the best mom you can be, but it's like the attack of the enemies is always there...I feel like I failed my son." ~Sis. Maggie Rhodes, the mother of Baby Ashton
r2c2h2 tha artivist says:
Many Black people do not like going to the doctor in particular for cultural reasons not to mention the good reason provided by this tragic tale...Many feel that some White or other ethnic doctors are not emotionally invested or concerned about them as individuals let alone their health status…Then some Black folks do not trust doctors based on what has historically happened to Blacks in America all in the supposed name of science and progress at the hands of white physicians…Tragic episodes such as the Tuskegee Experiment, the exploitation of Henrietta Lacks’ DNA without her consent at John Hopkins University and the troubling legacy of Dr. J. Marion Sims aka ‘The Father of Gynecology’ who performed horrific and sadistic experiments on enslaved African women without anesthesia are considered by many as good and valid reasons not to...Whether this is a fair assessment of the current situation or not is dependent on the individual and their personal experiences respectively but I can personally attest that hospitals can seem like cold and unforgiving spaces especially if one feels that their physician lacks respect and compassion for their well being…
With that said I am very disturbed by the tragic story of Baby Ashton...Black manhood it seems is under attack from birth in this system of white supremacy and this heinous act, whether intentional at first or not, proves it thoroughly (the cover-up is as equally as devastating as 'the crime')...The effeminization and emasculation of the Black man is in progress and people need to stop acting like they are not aware of it...The fact that the dokkktor(s) in question would let this Black baby suffer in writhing unimaginable pain without anesthesia and not inform his mother of the horrendous injury shows the lack of respect or concern for Black life in this racist paradigm...Black folks must learn that no one has their best interests at heart when they do not make their own self-interest and survival a priority...A people that cannot protect their kids, is a people that won't last long let alone thrive...Black people cannot continue or afford to leave their healthcare in the hands of those who have built their institutions, wealth and careers off of historically and presently exploiting their individual and collective misery and pain for a profit that does not benefit the aforementioned in neither the short or long term...There is no secret or 'conspiracy theory' that the powers that be are developing sinister ways of systemically eliminating Black people from the planet both covertly as well as overtly...Black people cannot afford to be silent on this issue...The very existence of the Black race depends on the many or a dedicated few in the diaspora organizing solutions and alternatives which clearly demand that Black life is not only 'celebrated' but also protected and respected...
More News About The Baby Ashton KKKastration Story...
Memphis Action News 5: Mother Claims Doctor Disfigured Son After 'Botched' Circumcision
Posted: Nov 06, 2013 8:40 PM CST Updated: Nov 08, 2013 8:07 AM CST
Posted: Nov 06, 2013 8:40 PM CST Updated: Nov 08, 2013 8:07 AM CST
By Janice Broach -
(WMC-TV) - Circumcision for newborn boys is considered one of the most common medical procedures in the world. But one Memphis mother says her son was mutilated during the common surgery.
Maggie Rhodes' son Ashton was three months old when she had him circumcised at a local low-cost clinic.
"When he was in the room, he was screaming like life and death like, like there wasn't no tomorrow," she said. "When she pulled back the cloth, like the thing was like gone. She cut up instead of down, instead of cutting around the top of the penis."
Rhodes says her son now screams when he urinates. He will need reconstruction work to correct what she considers a botched procedure.
Ob/Gyn Doctor Kent Lee did not perform Ashton's circumcision nor has he ever met Ashton or his mom. Lee says most circumcisions are safe, but he says mistakes do happen.
"I've been doing this for 20 years, and I have never ever seen anybody with everything completely cut off," said Ob/Gyn Dr. Kent Lee. "Actual penectomy is extraordinarily rare."
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics 1 in 500 newborn boys experience significant acute complications as a result of circumcision. The procedure typically takes five to 30 minutes.
Rhodes says her son was in surgery for nearly three hours.
"While he was screaming, I asked her, I kept asking was everything OK?" said Rhodes. "She was like uhh, 'I don't know if he's too large to get did inside the clinic, but I am going to do it anyway.' "
Another Ob/Gyn says some people have their child go through the procedure in the hospital.
"Some people do it within the first week or two," said Dr. Charles Ryan.
Ryan says the sooner a newborn receives the procedure the better, but circumcisions can still be done up to three months after birth with no problems.
Rhodes did not have her son circumcised in the hospital because she was unable to be present for the procedure. Also, her son had a cold during his six-week-checkup. The doctor said wait.
"You try to be the best mom you can be, but it's like the attack of the enemies is always there," said Rhodes. "I feel like I failed my son."
Studies suggest circumcision decreases the likelihood of certain diseases and infant urinary tract infections. but medical opinions vary.
The percentage of newborn boys circumcised in the U.S. dropped to 54 percent last year. Rhodes wishes she had not had her son circumcised and wonders what she will tell him when he gets older.
She is devastated. Rhodes' story is far from over as she is currently talking to a lawyer.
"I feel in my heart, I felt like I couldn't do nothing but cry," she said.
Doctors say if you are expecting a newborn baby boy in your family then plan ahead.
Research the pros and cons of circumcision and ask specifically about the surgeon's experience with the procedure. Find out if they will be using anesthesia and how to treat pain after it is over.
Read the CDC's report on national and regional trends on the topic
here. Join the conversation on Facebook about this story here.
Copyright 2013 WMC-TV. All rights reserved.
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FOX 13 Memphis: Mother Upset Over Botched Circumcision
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Posted: Nov 08, 2013 12:00 AM CST Updated: Nov 15, 2013 12:00 AM CST
By Ernie Freeman
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (FOX13) -
It doesn't happen often, but when a doctor botches a child's circumcision, it's heart-breaking.
Maggie Rhodes is dealing with that heartbreak right now, after a catastrophic mistake on the operating table.
Removal of the foreskin from a child's penis is rooted in concerns about health, hygiene and religion. But some question the necessity of the procedure.
Rhodes is sorry she ever took her young son to get circumcised.
"After I went home and I discovered that my son's penis was not there, I immediately froze, like, oh my God," Rhodes recalls.
The mother said she couldn't believe what happened when she took her three-month-old son Ashton to Christ Community Health Center on Broad Avenue for a circumcision in August. She says doctors told her the procedure would take about 20 minutes.
But after a couple hours, Ashton was still in surgery.
"It took them about three hours to do the circumcision and so my baby screamed the whole three hours, like the whole process," Rhodes said. "Then even when she gave him back to us, he was still screaming."
Rhodes said the doctor performing the surgery obviously botched the procedure. But when it was over, she says they simply returned her screaming son to her, never telling her about the devastating mistake that had happened in the operating room.
"I should have been notified that something went wrong in this room with your baby," she said. "I wasn't notified. They gave me back my baby like nothing was wrong. They said, 'here go your son.' Yeah, something went wrong in that room."
It's something Rhodes said she didn't find out about until she went home with a still screaming son, and a diaper filled with blood.
She said her curious sister finally discovered Ashton's mutilated penis.
"When my sister pulled the cloth back, it was covered in blood and it was no penis there," Rhodes said.
All that was left was a partial penis and his tiny testicles. Rhodes said Ashton urinates through a hole in his penis. She says she can't imagine what she'll say to her son, when he's old enough to understand what happened to him.
"Like, 'Momma like, how could this happen to me? How could this happen to me?,'" she said. "How could you explain that to your child that you don't have a penis that they have to reconstruct one or you probably have might not never be able to have kids? That don't sit well with me at all."
Rhodes has hired an attorney and is pursuing a medical malpractice suit against Christ Community Health Centers.
As for little Ashton, a reconstructive surgery planned for October has been rescheduled for early next year.
FOX13 News contacted Christ Community Health Centers for a comment. We're told the CEO is aware of our request, but so far has not returned our repeated calls.
Read more: http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/story/23912521/mother-upset-over-botched-circumcision#at_pco=cfd-1.0#ixzz2ktaJWgwT
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Video: A Commentary On Baby Ashton KKKastration Story By Manifested Melanin
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11/15/2013~Intact Memphis Protests Botched Infant Circumcision:
