Public, private and charter schools in Iowa would be required to show fetal development videos to students starting in fifth grade under a bill passed Thursday by Republicans in the Iowa House.
Human growth and development classes and health classes in grades 5-12 would have to teach about “human development inside the womb.” That would include an ultrasound video showing vital organs in early fetal development.
The bill states teachers would also be required to show a computer-generated rendering, animation or ultrasound video “that depicts the humanity of the unborn child by showing prenatal human development, starting at fertilization, noting significant markers in cell growth and organ development throughout every stage of pregnancy.”
It would also prohibit the use of videos and other educational materials provided by groups that perform, promote or refer patients for abortions.
“It’s not about politics, but it challenges us to see value, beauty and dignity in every stage of human life ... I want to remind us all, that to teach a child to see life is to value it.”Rep. Helena Hayes
Rep. Helena Hayes, R-New Sharon, managed the bill’s passage. She said what’s revealed to children will echo in their future decisions.
“It’s not about politics, but it challenges us to see value, beauty and dignity in every stage of human life,” she said. “I want to remind us all, that to teach a child to see life is to value it.”
Rep. Austin Baeth, D-Des Moines, said the bill would ban schools from using evidence-based materials from places like the Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins University, because major medical research institutions perform or refer people for abortions at least to save the life of the mother.
“When you ban the truth, when you ban facts — as this bill does — what fills the void are falsehoods and unproven beliefs,” he said. “This bill opens the door to indoctrination.”
Baeth said he respects people who have differing views about abortion, but he said beliefs about abortion should not be taught in schools.
Hayes said state law would still require unbiased and research-based information to be shared in health classes. She said the Iowa Department of Education would interpret the restrictions in the bill and determine what materials can be used in schools.
“If you seek abortion and you promote abortion, you probably don’t have a whole lot of material about depicting … the humanity of life inside the womb,” Hayes said. “Because your objective, by definition, is to cease life in the womb. So the goals of those types of entities are totally different than what we are trying to accomplish with the intent of this bill.”
Some previous versions of the proposal would have specifically required schools to show a video similar to the “Baby Olivia” video that was produced by an anti-abortion group. Critics have said it is medically inaccurate because it doesn’t measure weeks of pregnancy the same way that doctors do, and it describes the fetus as “playing” and “exploring.”
Rep. Heather Matson, D-Ankeny, said that is likely the only video that would fit the requirements of the bill.
“Regardless of how you feel about when life begins, we cannot, in good conscience, require teaching information that is known to be factually inaccurate because of the personal political beliefs of some legislators,” she said.
The bill is now back in the Iowa Senate for consideration.
