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.

I have only read the first page (and bits of others): OP, I would complain to EVERYONE! Head, LEA, newspapers - the lot, whoever else you can think of.

I would be furious. Sorry your daughter and her classmates had to see that.

Agree with Runaway, I would complain very firmly to the head and the governors. This piece of inaccurate, sensationalist propaganda has no place in schools. They are supposed to educate children, not mislead them.

It is perfectly possible to debate abortion, or any other topic, without resorting to prejudicial lies and shock tactics. Children should be able to trust teachers to tell the truth.

If they are going to talk about euthanasia, will they be force to watch Hollywood versions of executions? Because that would be about as accurate.

OMG!!!! Have only read you OP but was so angered by it I've felt the need to post before reading the rest of the thread!

That's absolutely appalling and disgusting.......words fail me. I'm sure the Head and the LEA would be interested to know that it was shown.....it can't be approved, surely?

I think this thread has started to sideline a little into a pro life/choice debate. The crux of the matter is that this video sounds completely inappropriate to show in an RE lesson for 15 yr olds. I know a couple of RE teachers who obviosuly teach this topic and I know they try and do it as sensitively as possible fully in the knowledge that there could be pupils in the class who are struggling with this issue so it can be done with a little thought.
I would complain to the school but ensure that it completely about the film and not an objection on the subject iyswim

Differentname and anyone else, actually - have you seen this site? Its a pro-choice site, and is really impressive. I was touched by some of the stories on there.

Showing pupils some of them might be more helpful, IMO.

I would be making a formal complaint, and ensuring that children in the school aren't exposed to this crap again. It's inaccurate and sensationalist, and in no way helpful to having a balanced conversation about the ethics of reproductive choices and how people make those (which I presume is the point of the inclusion of the topic in the GCSE syllabus)

olderandwider - Thank you.

This video is evil, lying bollocks. It matters not a jot whether you're pro choice or anti abortion - it's a dreadful film full of inaccuracies.

Anyone choosing to use this in the classroom is not fit to teach.

The only exception would be if it were used as an example of how low people are prepared to stoop in order to get their view across.

Well you did let her do a RE class. You expected what, no right-wing propaganda of any kind? Once more an illustration of the injustice many families face having to send their children to religious state-funded schools.

I'm not one for saying go up the school and play hell on - but I would be in this case. That video was pretty heavily discredited so long ago and had such a distressing (and ineffectual) impact on me as a child that if any school ever ever ever tries to pull that stunt on any child of mine (if I ever get upduffed) - I WILL be going absolutely atomically ballistic.

No child of mine would be going to an RC school anyway - I've had the misfortune to teach in them, I went through their school system and if it was that, or a "bargepole" (as in you wouldn't touch it with a...) school - I'd homeschool first.

As for the rights and wrongs - like I say, I did end up having an abortion - accidents happen, we were using condoms which broke, the morning after pill failed and apparently the bastards of this world have super sperm (I'd love this theory tested scientifically as the Jezza Kyle show seems to prove it day in day out). There are women out there who DO make the choice for what may be percieved as "feckless" reasons - but one of the things that sticks with me from when I had to go in to have the pill version of a termination was the girl in the bed next to me - aged probably no more than 14.

Yes there needs to be an emphasis on exactly what abortion consists of, a discussion on whether a foetus is/isn't alive (I'd be hypocritical to grieve for a miscarriage as a lost baby yet absolve myself of that in terms of my termination), and an appreciation that actually it's a really really awful thing to go through (I had the pill version of it, didn't work fully so had to go surgical as well) and not to be entered into lightly. I can't however sit there and dismiss as "God's will - deal with it" where victims of rape, domestic violence etc are concerned or when a very young teenage girl who's been talked into it by a teenage boy has made a collossal mistake.

The video in question doesn't work - it distressed me greatly, yes; it got me convinced I was some kind of walking abomination because I existed because this aborted child of my mother's didn't - but when I discovered that fateful January that I'd ended up pregnant despite trying everything bar a cast iron codpiece to avoid it - The Silent Scream was definitely not there forcing me into a lifetime of abuse and violence with Mr Psycopath.

That is a disgusting vile load of rubbish, whether it was true in the 70/80's in america I don't know. What I do know is that this is not the right way to get the message across to children, I would very angry if this had been shown to my dd.

How was it linked to RE? How is it preparing her for her GCSE exactly?

I would be absolutely livid, I'd really go apeshit if DD was shown that.

I've seen it, I watched as some way of punishing myself just before I had an abortion and laughed in a hysterically mad way at it, as it's complete crap as are some of the other pro life site featuring baby born dolls covered in jelly.

Thanks, sirboobalot. I'll have a look.

Snobear4000 the OP's dd goes to a non-faith school.

Can i just point out- women have been taking control of their fertility since the dawn of time. It's not going to change. Unfortunately, in the days before safe, legal abortion and contraception were widely available, mothers who for lack of resources or whatever reason could not look after a baby would kill it upon birth.

In fact, infanticide rates went up after the Catholic church made it shameful for babies to be born outside of marriage.

In the twentieth centuries, in predominantly Catholic countries, poverty-stricken women who cant help having babies are putting themselves and their existing children into certain slow, drawn- out suffering due to lack of resources.

And now the pope says to Africa that condoms don't protect the users from AIDS, causing certain death to x-amount of people, x-amount of babies to be born with HIV, and undoing years of work in Africa to promote condom use, because people believe what the Catholic church tells them above anything else.

Abortion and contraception are the humane options and we are extrememely lucky to have them available to us.

Anti abortionists who try to warp impressionable minds on the subject are evil, and the Catholic church's attempts to socially engineer society are evil.

Pardon me if that wasn't quite as elequant as I hoped it would be, been up all night.

OP, make a very strongly worded complaint to the highest possible authority. Then withdraw your dd from that gcse and enrol her to take it in college or privately, depriving the scbool & teacher of what really matters to them- a good gcse result.

differentname and emptyshell thank you for sharing your own experiences, i cant even imagine how difficult that must have been for you

OP, i would take this to a newspaper and shame this school and teacher to the ground. how dare they. it is in no way appropriate to be shown to anyone, especially not 15 year old girls under the pretext of RP or PSHE. it is a horrible, awful video and is no way relevant to how abortions are carried out today. referring to the 'child' all the time, how innapropriate.

having had two abortions and lost a late term baby myself, i am so angry at certain people on this thread who seem to think that this video is acceptable because 'people need to know the horrible truth' or whatever. abortion is a horrible procedure. the choice to have an abortion is awful in itself, and having been through that decision myself i wouldnt wish that upon anyone, especially not my daughter after having watched that video.
but it is a personal choice, and as human beings, as women, we choose to bring life into this world, or we choose not to. it is our choice entirely, it is our body. and thats the message i hope to get across to my daughters.

OP, i really hope your DD is okay are you able to talk to her about it? i really hope her friend has someone to talk with.

OMG I remember that film. I cannot believe it is still even available. Good grief.
TBH, I have a notion that todays savvy, media wise and questioning young minds may be able to pck a few holes in that video. If they can get past the upsetting horror of it. If your dc is upset by the film, I suggest you talk to your dc about how the film has inaccuracies, to help them reach the truth, so they can then make informed judgements.

That's what I did all those years ago. I remember that RE lesson so vividly.I remember seeing the poster of the in bin bags and thinking - wouldn't those be in those special bags they put yak in to [yellow bags for incineration]....Why are they in a black bin bag.....That hasn't been done properly...... Probably because it had to be done in secret..... .WOuld have been better, if it had to be done, that it was done properly, and in safety, and with dignity ......or perhaps it's a big fat lie to try make me pro-life.....
So it back fired on them where I was concerned! I poured all of that into my GCSE to. I remember sitting at the little desk and thnking right, tell them what they want to hear and get the A.
Then I scrubbed out the essay plan, wrote something like 'I was going to write what you see above, to get the grades, but what I relly think is.....'

I assumed that this would be a RC school Interestng it wasn't. Dunno whay I assumed that really. Very prejudiced of me, and my DC's attend an RC school .

Where ever they attend, they will not be watching this film. Unless at an older age, throught their choice, and probably to support an essay on the manipulation of media fact and images.

Apologies for use of word yak - I obviously don't mean and didn't that when I was 15 either. I meant, you know, stuff that couldn't go into waste, and needed special treatment. Which at 15, was 'yak'.

f you see what I mean

OctaviaH
"Anti abortionists who try to warp impressionable minds on the subject are evil, and the Catholic church's attempts to socially engineer society are evil."

here here. anti abortionists refuse to let women have control over their own bodies. and that is not what i want my daughters to grow up with.
dont get started on the Pope though, we'll be here all day [grrrr]

Oklahoma abortion law

the last line of this article:

"a billboard, somewhere between work and home, that asks, "When abortion is made illegal, which back alley will you take your daughter to?"

is basically all that needs to be said to anti-choicers.

I would be on the phone demanding a meeting with the headmaster/mistress
It is not appropriate to show this in order to discuss the subject.

in my mind it is as clear as the discinction between what you would or would not show in a history class about torture used in war.

it is a cheap, ill thought out way of making a point that could be made in a much calmer way.

FUCKING HELL YANBU!!!!

Ps I did what sounds like the same syllabus as your dd in re at school. We were never shown anything like this and were encouraged to have reasoned debates. It was very interesting and practically the whole class got an A. The examiners are looking for a well informed and developed argument- they will not be impressed by the use of far right rhetoric and hyperbole. Your dd's teacher is actually damaging their chances of receiving a good grade!

There is another syllabus available for christian faith schools to teach, which looks at different branches of christianity. The system was set up like this to avoid faith schools even having to touch topics like abortion or euthanasia, as they would be obliged to present both sides in a non- biased manner, which seems to be impossible for them to do.

If your dd's teacher is a religious man/woman, suggest that she/he move to a school where they teach the other syllabus. Even if he/she is not, showing the video was a serious lapse of judgement.

I would go NUTS if my daughter was shown this video. Seriously would go mad.

How dare a school show something like this? What right do they have?

I would withdraw her from RE lessons for the entire time she is there. It is an utter outrage.

I would also tell everyone - media, MP, governors, LEA.

The Dr went to medical school in 1949!! Says it all really!!

Tanga, what have you decided to do about this? Can I please beg you to complain very loudly at the highest level, to prevent any other children being subjected to this in the future.