strip away
1. To tear, peel, or otherwise remove some outer layer or covering from something else, especially in a quick, intense, or violent manner. A noun or pronoun can be used between "strip" and "away." Quit stripping the bark away from the tree like that—it isn't good for it! This treatment strips away the dirt and dead cells from your skin. The doctors stripped the bandage away to check the wound.
2. To remove aspect, trait, ability, power, etc., from someone or something. A noun or pronoun can be used between "strip" and "away." The authoritarian government has been slowly stripping away its citizens' freedoms ever since it came into power. The board of directors stripped the manager's authority away while it conducted its internal review of the situation.