Episode 42 - Ghada Hatem-Gantzer
Ghada Hatem-Gantzer, a Lebanese obstetrician and gynecologist, discusses with Chloe Aftel the intricacies of her work providing competent, holisitic medical care for female-identified victims of gender based violence (GBV). Through an educational conversation, Hatem-Gantzer paints a detailed picture of the women she cares for, and how her success as founder of La Maison des Femmes (a center dedicated to these women), is owed to her unique approach. La Maison des Femmes understands the complexity of GBV, and employs a kaleidoscope of professionals adept at providing psychological, physical and social care at no cost for the patient. Simultaneous to sharing a deeper look at her life-changing practical work, Hatem-Gantzer expresses optimism for the future while applauding recent victories, such as gaining the French government’s support for pleasure-restoring surgeries regardless of context and the lifting of the French ban against abortions for women three months into their terms. Overall, victories like this, combined with how Hatem-Gantzer addresses complex issues, leaves the listener both sober and hopeful, with a renewed belief that an equitable world exists if we have the courage to think deeply about, and vouch for, what is just. Some of what the episode explores:
Hatem-Gantzer identifies the four types of female genital mutilation and the procedures that have been developed to treat these issues
Elaborates on the psychological state of the women she helps and the shift that follows surgical operation and the restoration of pleasure
She explains the logistical, financial and historical obstacles she’s faced and how she’s overcome them while clarifying why national and crowd sourced funding is critical to the success of her efforts.
Ghada Hatem-Gantzer is acclaimed for her fierce defense of women’s health rights and for founding the La Maison des Femmes—the first healthcare facility for women recovering from gender based violence—in 2016. Hatem-Gantzer was born in 1959 in Lebanon, where she went to school at the Lycee Francais in Beirut, and then later to France to study medicine. In 1996, determined to offer comprehensive care, she created the first Medical Assistance Center for Procreation at the Bluets Maternity Hospital. Continuing her mission, in 2010 she joined the Hopital Delafontine where she established an IVF center, a female genital mutilation treatment unit, and a breast cancer unit. In 2011, she took lead of the maternity unit of the Centre Hospitalier Delafontine, where she discovered that out of 4,700 women who had given birth, 15% had experienced genital mutilation. It was this discovery that inspired her to found La Maison des Femmes. Since its opening, La Maison des Femmes has received the Brussels CHU Peace Prize in 2017, and the European Citizen Prize in 2018. In 2024, Hatem-Gantzer was given the honor of carrying the Olympic Torch in Paris, an apt symbolism of the light she’s brought to thousands of women who prevail despite their circumstance.
Chloe Aftel has spent her career working in commercial photography, photojournalism, and film. She’s an established name in modern photography with work featured in The New York Times, Mother Jones, Playboy, Dazed & Confused, Vogue Germany, The Hollywood Reporter, The Wall Street Journal, Vogue Italia, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue, and more. Aftel has photographed victims of sexual violence, reported on COVID 19's impact on the trans community, and gained access as the first reporter in COVID wards of the West Coast’s hardest-hit hospitals. She has covered underground abortion providers, the impact of gender pronouns on daily life, and clergy abuse. Aftel's first book, Outside & In Between, is an award-winning anthology covering gender non-conforming people across the United States.
