to be disturbed that my DD was shown this anti-abortion video

[Tanga]

DD (15) came home saying that she'd been shown a video of 'the baby's view of abortion' in her RE class today. She was pretty horrified (both for herself and on behalf of one of her friends who has had an abortion)which I'd guess would be a fairly typical response, but she went on to make some wildly innacurate comments about the proceedure (some very graphic so I'll spare you) so I asked her what it was she'd actually been shown.

It's called 'The Silent Scream' (written in Hammer horror style lettering) and I've googled it and am fairly appalled. It's (IMO) an anti-abortion piece of propaganda made in the '80's and is riddled with innaccuracies.

Is this a normal video to show a class of teenagers? It was presented as fact, BTW, and as 'the most humane method of abortion' by the RE teacher.

Our biology teacher had a feotuses of varying sizes preserved in glass jars.

they were little souls..... you are right to be livid

Is it? factually inaccurate and biased?

Well it it isn't true, what does an abortion consist of?

Because if we are living in a country where abortion is legal then people need to know, otherwise they can't make an informed choice. So if this depiction of an abortion is inaccurate, what is accurate?

can you imagine showing that video to women or couples who had made a choice to have an abortion for whatever reason just so they fully understood the procedure? How utterly ridiculous, of course it would be an awful thing to do. So why is it a good thing to show to teenagers, most of whom haven't had to make that kind of decision and probably never will?

is that what you want BAFE? For every person about to have an abortion to see that video so they truly understand what they are doing? How odd, how cruel, how awful.

Bloody hell! I just watched some of it on you tube. It's horrendous and certainly not appropriate when some of the girls in class may have had an abortion.
Although I don't particularly like that sometimes abortion is used as a late form of contraception, I really don't think that video is suitable. Surely something factual but less graphic could have been shown??
The bit I saw actually upset me and I've never been in the situation where I've had to make a decision like that. Poor girl that had had an abortion

No I certainly don't want to force someone about to have an abortion to watch that video.

People should be able to choose whether to watch or not, which is what I said earlier.

incidentally BM and BAFE, abortion is a hugely personal matter and the decision to abort is never made lightly. I can't really believe that it is used as some form of contraception.

It is not necessary to see in gory detail the actuality of your decision. In the same way that I would not wish to see a video of my two ERPC's.

Urgh, I've seen enough of that video now.

Why not have a midwife/nurse/doctor explain in a straightforward way - why show this awful film?

Funnysintgegarden. I wish that were true but unfortunately some people do take it lightly and perhaps if they knew the truth of it then they wouldn't.

How exactly could anyone explain abortion in a nice way? Seriously!

you could be sensitive about it!

At about 17 minutes, the man says that the 'child' opens its mouth and emits a silent scream. Then it says that the child "the child is moving away... in a pathetic attempt to avoid the abortionist's..."

Really? I thought the latest research confirmed that foetuses were largely unconscious / sedated in the womb and mostly unaware of their surroundings.

If this is correct, then how can an uncounscious / sedated foetus consciously move away from the abortionist? or try to make a silent scream?

This is why it is biased and inaccurate (amongst many, many more reasons!)

PeedoffwithNits not sure what you are saying here - a paragraph in the termly newsletter stated that students in my daughter's year group were going to be studying abortion in RE. There was no censent form, or further detail. Are you suggesting that as a responsible parent I somehow should have anticipated that my child would be shown this and should have made further enquiries to avoid her being upset? She's done sex ed in PHSE, too, and I didn't think to make further enquiries in case she was going to be shown porn, either.

Bubbleymummy & BAFE I'm not objecting to her being given facts about abortion (in a sensitive and age-appropriate manner), but I am objecting to her being told that this piece of exploitative, sensationalist propaganda is fact. This is not how abortions are carried out - I'm not convinced this is how they were carried out 30 years ago when the 'film' (apparently a series of stills spliced together) was made.

Unfortunately, I know several people who have said "well I don't like condoms and I'm always forgetting my pill. If I get pregnant I'll just have an abortion." Most of these people are educated and are usually very sensible.
Personally, I couldn't do it.
You can't explain abortion in a "nice way" but a graphic video of needles being stuck in a little foetus with a woman having the procedure in the back grown is being shown is very unnecessary. Her feet were even wobbling around in the stirrups

How? How can you sensitively explain suctioning a foetus/ baby? Or lethal injection or whatever other methods are used.

How can a fetus without a cortex react to any stimulus, FFS.

Have you got to the 'buckets of babies' bits?

It's a horrible, evil, cynical piece of work.

The 'choice' to watch it is there - it's widely available. It's not appropriate to show it in schools, because it's inaccurate.

Unless you went to town on glossing the reasons why it's a nasty piece of misogynist propaganda - which would rather defeat the object.

Basically, as a presentation of the anti-abortion position, it's not fit for purpose.

& on any level, it's not fit for showing to a classful of 21st century 15 year olds.

Tanga, how do you think it happens then? Can you think of a nice way to do it or are you just in denial?

You can explain just the facts, explain it's a tough choice, explain the different reasons why some people have this, give out support info.

The facts are horrific though. There's no way around that. It's all very well people saying 'be sensitive' and 'just give the facts' but I would really like to hear the nice way to realistically describe an abortion.

I would be fucking livid and be making written complaints asap!

sorry, but I personally don't think it's horrific.

I think it's rather telling that no such thing as a "sensitive" abortion video has been made.

Why do you suppose that is?

Because with all the people around who are NOT pro-lifers, well, you'd think one of them would have shown the flip side of the coin by now wouldn't you, I mean, that video is very old so they've had plenty of time.

Unless, of course, it isn't possible to make a sensitive pro-abortion video.

pro abortion?

Am sure there's lots of pro-choice stuff out there.