Michael Savage Slams Controversial Circumcision Practice on the Radio
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
On his nationally syndicated radio show on Monday, conservative host Michael Savage slammed metzitzah b’peh, the Orthodox Jewish circumcision ritual that has led to the transmission of herpes in infant males.
Savage, citing a Fox News online article headlined, “Two infants contract herpes following circumcision,” said it was a story “that shakes you to your core.” However, the original posting of the Fox News article had inaccuracies, such as claiming that one of the children also contracted HIV. Last week, the New York City department of health and mental hygiene announced that a second child this year had been diagnosed with herpes after circumcision, but no case has ever led to the transmission of HIV.
The Yeshiva News posted the original Fox News article on their website. It said, “After undergoing an orthodox circumcision ritual, two infant boys have contracted herpes—with one testing positive for HIV-1, the New York City Department of Health said yesterday.”
The parents of the child in the most recent case did not identify the name of the mohel who performed the procedure, nor did they sign a consent form to have the risky procedure done, which is a new regulation in New York City. The DOHMH said they will not pursue legal action in this case, despite the absence of a form.
Savage, in describing the oral suctioning technique of metzitzah b’peh, said he was “sickened by this barbarism” and devoted the entire hour of his show to the topic.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
