Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed House Bill 2435 into law on Tuesday, requiring all public schools in the state to include an approved prenatal child development segment in the state-mandated age-appropriate family life curriculum. A three-minute ultrasound or computer animation can satisfy the curriculum requirements; Live Action’s “Meet Baby Olivia” is listed as one such animation, though it is not specifically required.
The legislation previously passed the House in an overwhelming 67-23 vote in March, and likewise, the Senate passed the bill by a wide margin, at 21-6.
“Meet Baby Olivia” was created by Live Action in collaboration with medical experts, using data from the Endowment for Human Development (EHD), a non-profit organization “committed to neutrality regarding all controversial bioethical issues.” Yet pro-abortion media outlets have attacked “Baby Olivia” as being medically inaccurate, largely using abortionists or abortion activists as their sources. However, some have admitted that the real problem is that they feel “Baby Olivia” could ‘stigmatize’ abortion: the direct and intentional killing of preborn human beings, making young people more likely to choose life.
Women are indeed less likely to choose abortion if they are shown the humanity of their children.
A poll from Focus on the Family, for example, found that 78% of women undecided about whether or not to have an abortion chose life after seeing ultrasounds of their babies. Understanding that the baby inside the womb is a real, living human being — and not just a meaningless clump of cells — can be incredibly powerful.
Man on the street interviews featuring the “Baby Olivia” video also received a positive reception from the public, including when asked about showing the video to children. “I think it’s good to know, especially as young women. When you’re graduating high school you’re an ‘adult.’ Knowing what’s going on in your body. We aren’t preparing kids like that nowadays like we should. So I think that should actually be in schools,” one woman said.
Another person said, “I think it’s great for schools because it’s actually teaching children how life is created. And so many times, we just say, ‘You have sex, you get pregnant, and this is what your life looks like.’ And in schools, if you’re able to teach people and children and kids and teens what actual, the development of a child looks like and what pregnancy looks like and what it all means, I think you’re giving them a lot of information that then they can use throughout their life.”
Live Action founder and president Lila Rose reacted to the news in a press release, stating:
Tennessee is setting a precedent for other states to follow in prioritizing comprehensive education on human development by mandating state-of-the-art life-like animation explaining human development, like Live Action’s Baby Olivia video, in state education standards. Tennessee has joined North Dakota in setting the standard for world-class education that ensures students are equipped with the knowledge they need. Tennessee has over 1 million public school students who will now be equipped with cutting-edge educational material on human development in the womb.
Representative Gino Bulso, lead sponsor of the Baby Olivia Act in the Tennessee House of Representatives, added:
When the dust settles on the legislative achievements of Tennessee’s 113th General Assembly, I believe the Baby Olivia Act will be counted among the most consequential bills enacted into law. Meet Baby Olivia will place age-appropriate, scientifically accurate information concerning fetal development in the hands of school children across the state. The fruits of including Meet Baby Olivia as a part of every family life curriculum used in Tennessee’s public schools will be long-lasting and widespread across Tennessee.
Tennessee’s prenatal education bill is set to take effect in the fall.
Editor’s Note, 4/26/24: This article has been updated since its original publication to add press release remarks.
