The Tennessee House Education Instruction Committee approved a bill on Tuesday that would require that public schools include an approved preborn child development ultrasound or computer animation as part of the state-required family life curriculum.
House Bill 2435 lists Live Action’s “Meet Baby Olivia” as an example of a computer animation that would meet the bill’s requirements. Schools could choose to show a different three-minute animation or high-resolution ultrasound, according to the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Gino Bulso. If this bill is signed into law, schools will begin using fetal development videos in the 2024-2025 school year.
A similar bill was enacted in North Dakota last year, and others have also been introduced in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Missouri, and Iowa. The bills, along with the “Baby Olivia” video itself, have come under heavy attack from pro-abortion groups. The Associated Press painted the video as a pro-life political move, and used pro-abortion sources to attempt to discredit the video. However, “Baby Olivia” has the backing of medical experts and was created using detailed “award-winning content” from the Endowment for Human Development (EHD). EHD is a self-described “nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health science education and public health” which is “committed to neutrality regarding all controversial bioethical issues.” Its website states that its “board of directors, board of advisors, staff, and volunteers includes accomplished educators, researchers, authors, programmers, and clinicians from a variety of scientific and business disciplines who share the common goal of improving lifelong health through prenatal development-based education.”
As reported, “U.S. science educators have endorsed the organization’s award-winning content, which National Geographic also distributes.”
According to The Tennessean, at least one Tennessee legislator has tried to connect the “Baby Olivia” video and the state bill to the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that said frozen embryos created during the in-vitro fertilization (IVF) process are to be included as children under the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.
“This bill has got nothing to do with IVF. It is strictly looking at a presentation of a scientifically accurate computer generated video or ultrasound that shows human life and development from conception through birth, and it doesn’t get into IVF at all,” Bulso said.
Rep. Gloria Johnson, an opponent of the bill, called the video “deceptive and problematic for a young audience,” adding, “It’s designed to manipulate the emotions of the viewers…”
However, Rep. Chris Todd noted, “I was trained as a biologist, and [“Baby Olivia” is] definitely accurate. It’s incredibly accurate. We have a lot of things in our society that are protected … in the environmental world and animal world.”
The “Baby Olivia” video has been reviewed and endorsed by OB-GYNs and other medical professionals, including Dr. David Bolender, PhD, Cell Biology, Neurobiology & Anatomy, Medical College of Wisconsin; Dr. Donna Harrison of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists; Michelle Cretella, MD, Executive Director of the American College of Pediatricians; and Jeffrey Barrows, DO, MA, Senior VP Bioethics and Public Policy for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations.
Certified OB-GYN Kathi Aultman, MD, FACOG, attested to the accuracy of Live Action’s video:
Olivia is a spectacular and medically accurate portrayal of the development of a baby girl within the womb. It is based on information from the Endowment for Human Development, a highly respected scientific source on embryology and fetal development. Olivia draws back the curtain on the womb giving us a realistic glimpse of the baby within. As a retired OB-GYN, I wish this had been available for my patients.
Correction, 3/19/24: The original article and title incorrectly stated that the Tennessee House had passed the bill instead of the House Education Instruction Committee. We regret the error.
