A bill that would require Tennessee schoolchildren to watch a fetal development animation video made by abortion opposition group Live Action is on its way to Governor Bill Lee’s desk.
The State Senate voted 21 to 6 in favor of the legislation Thursday, voting down four proposed amendments by Senate Democrats hoping to provide parents and teachers with more discretion and consent for whether not to show the “Meet Baby Olivia” video.
Senator Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, proposed one of those failed amendments. It would have given parents and guardians the option to opt into allowing their child to view the video.
Akbari said she proposed the change based on feedback she got from parents in her district.
“I think that a parent should be able to choose whether or not their child sees something that’s the equivalent of an ultrasound,” said Akbari. “I will say again this is allowing consent by a parent or legal guardian. It’s something that this body prizes, and certainly when showing something that could be deemed controversial by a parent, I think that they should be able to say whether or not their child should be able to watch this video or not.”
Senator Charlene Oliver, D-Nashville, proposed another amendment that would’ve required a mandate from school districts or a school’s governing body to show the video.
“As a parent myself, and I’ve heard many members in this body talk about school choice, parent choice as the lay of the land and how it should be, but it seems to be only convenient when it fits a certain political ideology. And I don’t agree with this as a parent. I need to see what my child, who has access to all kinds of technology, what they are being exposed to. And as a parent, I want to raise them in the way that I choose how to do that. I don’t want to leave that in the hands of, as this bill says, Live Action. I don’t even know who that is and I’m leaving them to indoctrinate my child with material that I don’t even know is factual, medically accurate, that information needs to be left to the professionals,” said Oliver.
Senate Republicans disagreed including Senator Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, who says she co-sponsored the bill after Representative Gino Bulso, R-Brentwood, approached her with the legislation.
It doesn’t specifically require schools to show the “Olivia” video, but it does require them to screen it or a video like it.
“I was in total support of this bill as are many of my constituents and people that I’ve heard from across the state of Tennessee,” said Bowling. “It does show conception and it is an AI-type (artificial intelligence) of film, but it’s medically correct and it shows the moment when the sperm unites with the egg and that is the beginning of life.”
The State House passed a companion bill last month.
Live Action has defended the medical accuracy of the video, however the professionals such as American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) claims it mischaracterizes the timeline of pregnancy and has no scientific backing.
