Posted on 10/30/2006 5:46:15 AM PST by paltz
(CBS4) FT. LAUDERDALE An art teacher at a Fort Lauderdale charter school is facing indefinite suspension after showing a self-made documentary on ‘good and evil’ to a group of 10 and 11 year old students, featuring gory abortion scenes. Some students and parents complained, and the school objected, but teacher Marc Greenblum says he has no regrets in showing the graphic video.
The film was shown approximately two weeks ago in Greenblum’s art class at the Downtown Academy of Technology and Arts, a charter school funded with tax dollars and under the oversight of the Broward County School Board.
The video, as described by parents who saw it with school officials, included graphic images of the Holocaust, 9/11, and the Ku Klux Klan, among others, and juxtaposed them with extremely graphic images which were allegedly from abortions.
School officials declined to allow CBS4 to view the video, saying they wanted it first to be viewed by Broward County School District administrators, but one student shared his memories of the presentation.
“It was very gory, and all red all over the place,” said one 11-year-old student whose identity is being withheld by cbs4.com at the request of his parents.
“I don’t have any regrets for having shown it and presented it,” teacher Greenblum said Thursday, admitting that even he found the abortion video in the documentary disturbing enough to make him cry. Some of his students said the video was upsetting.
“There was this disturbing picture of a baby’s hand reaching out from the Mom’s stomach and grabbing the doctor’s finger, and there was a baby in a bucket,” the boy said, describing the film played to his art class by Greenblum.
“It’s just so graphic, and I broke down in tears,” said parent Joan Daniel, whose son attends the school and viewed the documentary. Daniel said she viewed the video for the first time Thursday, after her son complained to her, and she complained to the school.
The film was made with the knowledge of the school, and even featured an interview with the school’s principal, according to parents who viewed the video. However, school officials say they were unaware of the full content of the final product and had not authorized its presentation to students.
“He should not have shown this,” said principal Jim DiSebastian, who suspended Greenblum Thursday after CBS4 News began investigating reports of the video’s classroom presentation.
Daniel said she was upset it took two weeks for the school to show her and another parent the video after they complained, and in that time, other parents were not notified the film had been shown, and teacher Greenblum continued to meet with students. When they viewed the video Thursday, the school has yet to take action against Greenblum, and she was at a loss to understand why.
“Someone that’s an educator should know that this is not acceptable, should already know what’s acceptable and what’s not acceptable, and this is way over the line,” Daniel told CBS4’s Evan Bacon in an exclusive interview.
“There are consequences,” said DiSebastian, “and he didn’t think, and it can’t ever happen again.”
But despite the objection of his employers, Greenblum remains unapologetic for showing his young students the graphic and bloody images without the permission of the school or their parents.
“I regret maybe showing it a little prematurely,” Greenblum said, “but having done it, no, and having shown it and educating them and maybe it will change their lives, and they’ll say ‘hey, I saw that' and they’ll talk with someone why may be considering it, and then they can actually touch other lives that way, no, how could you say I would regret that, no.”
Not all parents objected to the video. Some gathered at the school Thursday and spoke in defense of Greenblum, saying they believe students need to know about ‘evil’ in the world.
“Instead of keeping them in the dark”, said one parent, “Might as well they be exposed to everything. That’s my opinion. I have no regret.”
The film was turned over to the Broward County School Board, which controls the charter under which the Downtown Academy of Technology and Arts operates. The Academy receives tax dollars for every student enrolled, and most follow all state laws and meet state and county requirements to keep its charter.
Thursday, school officials said they were looking into the situation but had no immediate reaction.
At least one parent was reported to have withdrawn her child from the school over the incident.
I agree. I thought it was one of the most beautiful images I've ever seen.
susie
I agree completely!!!
I had to do a simulated radio broadcast on a controversial topic for a class in college. I was VERY pro-abortion at the time and was prepared to put wht I called the pro-life "nuts" to shame.
I knew the pro-abortion side...I had known it for years. Because we were required to honestly and fairly present both sides of the issue, I had to force myself to look at the issue from the "other" side.
Needless to say, after doing extensive research via reading and watching videos (including graphic ones showing actual abortions) to see why pro-lifers could possibly believe the way they did, I literally became pro-life overnight! And I've been pro-life ever since!!! That was back around 1974.
There is NOTHING more effective to shape an innocent mind or change a seemingly-hardened, pro-abortion heart against abortion as a graphic abortion video!!! If a picture is worth a thousand words, a graphic abortion video is worth a MILLION!!!
I WROTE: "You mean like when they show OTHER sex-ed videos?"
DTOGO RESPONDED: "No idea what you're talking about."
I was actually being sarcastic. Teachers aren't criminally charged when they discuss and/or demonstrate "sex-ed" topics such as putting condoms on a banana or show videos about such things. Nor should they be criminally charged when they show the possible RESULTS of their activities using (or not using) condoms.
If the children are "old enough" for "sex-ed," they are "old enough" to see the possible RESULTS!!!
Show the video!!!
Nonsense, this all about the teacher's personal agenda against abortion.
Thanks - wagglebee pinged this out earlier. We are both pingers.
:-)
Many young women are more or less coerced into having an abortion, many are not told the truth about fetal development, fetal pain, or the option of adoption. (Obviously they've heard of adoption, but if they are told details and offered a choice, even the offer of helping connect them up with prospective parents, that would make a huge difference.) Many are not told of the chances of injury to themselves, or the fact that many women experience severe depression after an abortion.
So they deserve some compassion. If the truth were told about abortion to many who plan abortion, a lot of them would change their minds.
Well, if it is simply a mass of cells like a tumor I can totally relate to cutting it out without a regret. So what is your stance on what you were posting earlier? Do you think women have killed themselves due to regret about an abortion?
DTOGO RESPNDED: "Nonsense, this all about the teacher's personal agenda against abortion."
It may be a "personal agenda against abortion," but I stand by my comment above...If a child is "old enough" for "sex-ed," they are "old enough" to see the possible RESULTS!!!
That's the picture that Fox News fired Drudge for showing live on the air. Oh the horror!
Feel perfectly free to make that decision for your own child. But leave mine alone.
I agree with you.
Show it to them.
Let them SEE just what an abortin IS.
" I can't imagine anyone thinking an image like that is disturbing, even an 11 year old."
I thought that was odd how that image was described as disturbing.
There are alot of ways to describe that image...miraculous, wonderous, beautiful.
Maybe the children were not told this was a photo taken during life-saving surgery? That the child is still alive?
The fact that people found it disturbing is...disturbing.
How many of these kids after having seen what abortion truly is, could ever get one or assist their girlfried/sig. other in getting one?
It sounds like this video was not age appropirate for 10 year olds
I don't like when liberals pull their stunts in schools .. I wouldn't like it if our side did it either
DEFINATELY!!!
I'm as pro-life as anyone on this board but showing grisly scenes like that to 11 year olds is disgraceful.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.