NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A bill that would allow students to watch a three-minute video that says human life starts at fertilization passed the state House of Representatives on March 18, despite the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists calling it "anti-abortion misinformation designed to manipulate the emotions of viewers."
Generally, the bill would require schools to show a video of at least three minutes that shows the "development of the brain, heart, sex organs, and other vital organs in early fetal development, such as 'Meet Baby Olivia,' a high-quality, computer-generated animation developed by Live Action that shows the process of fertilization and the stages of human development inside the uterus. "
The video is named "Meet Baby Olivia," and starts by showing a fully-formed infant in a womb before transitioning to depict a fertilized egg implanting inside a uterus.
The video said that after around three weeks the embryo's heartbeat "can be detected," and has brain activity after six weeks of fertilization. It also said at nine weeks, a fetus will sigh and stretch, before "playing in the womb" at 11 weeks.
"This is Olivia. Though she has yet to greet the outside world, she has already completed an amazing journey," the video said at the start. "This is the moment that life begins. A new human being has come into existence. At fertilization, her gender, ethnicity, hair color, eye color and countless traits are already determined."
Normally, the sex of a newborn can only be determined between 18 weeks and 20 weeks after conception.
According to documents from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, a heartbeat can be seen on an ultrasound between five and six weeks from conception. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said a heart is formed at around three weeks from conception.
The National Institutes of Health also said pregnant women usually start feeling movement from a fetus at around 20 weeks, or during the second trimester. It said an infant is considered to be born full-term at 39 or 40 weeks of pregnancy.
The bill to be discussed by state lawmakers, HB 2435, would require the "Meet Baby Olivia" video to be watched by students as part of schools' family life curriculum. It was introduced by Rep. Gino Bulso (R - Brentwood), and amended from its original goal to require education leaders to submit reports about parental complaints.
The bill's amended fiscal note said the video is free and widely available.
"This bill is a piece of anti-abortion legislation that is being moved through our committee so that it is integrated into our public school system," Rep. Aftyn Behn (D - Nashville) during a March 6 meeting of the Education Instruction Subcommittee.
Lawmakers immediately objected to her statement.
"Physicians feel like this information is not accurate. One particular OB-GYN while speaking for ACOG said the video also mischaracterizes how early survival outside the womb is possible, the video's heartbeat mentions are problematic because the heart would not yet be developed at the point that it claims. He noted that the video uses the sound of a fully-developed heartbeat, rather than the electrical impulses that are apparent at that time," said Rep. Gloria Johnson (D - Knoxville).
She also said there is scientific consensus on the moment that life begins. She also said it advances the idea that fetuses are people and that abortion care is wrong.
"So, physicians say that this video is medically inaccurate. And we do, in our biology classes, have a factual curriculum about that development that doesn't try to influence how people feel about it. Just your basic medical facts," said Johnson. "So, my concern here is that this video is deceptive and problematic for a young audience. It's designed to manipulate the emotions of viewers."
Johnson also said the video did not have the support of the largest related medical organization — the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. It has a membership of more than 60,000 people.
Bulso said the video is not medically inaccurate. He also said the video had the backing of organizations who participated in its development as being medically sound, and he said he believed ACOG has political motivations.
"So this group has a political view but none of the other groups do, is what you're saying. That's interesting," Johnson said.
The video's website also offers "more pro-life resources" at the bottom of its webpage. It was produced by Live Action, an explicitly anti-abortion nonprofit. Behn also said many of Live Action's videos have been discredited for inaccuracies.
Behn also asked if the organization would monetarily benefit from the video being played in classrooms. Bulso said there would be no contract to play the video in schools, and said Live Action could not profit from the bill.
