No circumcision battle in Santa Monica after all

Jena Troutman, the lactation consultant and self-described “children’s rights advocate” who was behind the anti-circumcision effort in Santa Monica, says she'll drop the ban bid before beginning to collect signatures. She blames the media’s misrepresentation of her cause as an attack on religious freedom. From the Jewish Journal's Bloggish blog.

“It shouldn’t have been about religion in the first place,” Troutman said in an interview. “Ninety-five percent of people aren’t doing it for religious reasons, and with everyone from the New York Times to Glenn Beck focusing on the religious issue, it’s closing Americans down to the conversation.”

Troutman was featured prominently in an article in the New York Times on Sunday about attempts to ban circumcision in two California cities. A mother of two, Troutman runs the website wholebabyrevolution.com, which she describes as an educational resource for parents considering circumcision.

Troutman also said that Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom posted news about her withdrawal of the ballot measure on his Facebook feed this afternoon.

Previously on LA Observed:
Anti-circumcision vote could be coming to Santa Monica