Bréf til Youtube

Dear Friends,

I sent the letter below to YouTube today.  Unfortunately I received a form letter in response telling me I had to fill out a form on their site which in spite of numerous attempts, I have not been able to access.  I could have sent a similar letter to Google, as they deleted the birth clip as well.  But if I’m not able to find an address to send this to, I may just have to post it in my blog.  In any case, please feel free to pass it along.  And if anyone has any other ideas on how to deal with this please let me know.

Laura

 

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To Whom It May Concern:

Many wonderful childbirth videos have been deleted by YouTube supposedly because they violate your obscenity policies.  Homebirth and natural childbirth videos are specifically being targeted, yet many are far less graphic than hospital birth videos which show close up images of vaginas being cut by doctors (episiotomies) and other interventions.  Perhaps when birth is presented as a medical event it is viewed as acceptable but when it is presented as a natural, loving act between a woman, her baby and her partner it is viewed as sexual and therefore obscene. 

 

My lovely video that was deleted by YouTube is now posted on my site - http://www.unassistedbirth.com/unassistedchildbirth.mov  

 

Can YouTube tell me why my video was taken down yet these were not?

 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=cNP6PYQWknQ

 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=WCIKCJ1CmeU

 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=q_P3VhPpXNk

 

Censorship at YouTube is currently being discussed on message boards such as this one - http://www.joyousbirth.info/forums/showthread.php?t=8651&highlight=pulled+utube+videos 

 

Those who have complained to YouTube have received letters of denial:

 

----- Original Message -----
From: "YouTube Support"
Sent: Saturday, June 30, 2007 10:06 AM
Subject: Re: [#167435530] YouTube Support

Hi,
Thanks for your email.

Actually, we are not taking videos of natural birth down. If you could
please provide the URLs to the videos in question, I'll be able to look
into this matter further.

 

Regards,

Wynston
The YouTube Team

 

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The letter above was sent on June 30^th.  I received the letter below on June 23^rd.

 

Dear Member:

After being flagged by members of the YouTube community and reviewed by YouTube staff, the video below has been removed due to its inappropriate nature.

An unassisted childbirth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMaAfakqHpo

Please refer to our Terms of Use and the Community Guidelines for more information on what video material is not permitted on YouTube.

The YouTube Team

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Many of us are offended by YouTube’s policies and are considering contacting the media.  I am a childbirth writer and have recently been interviewed by numerous magazines, newspapers, radio shows and TV shows including the Washington Post, Reuters International, Associated Press Television and BBC radio.  I am sure that at least one of the reporters I’ve spoken with would be interested in doing a story on censorship at YouTube.  In addition to childbirth videos, YouTube has also deleted videos containing footage of mothers breastfeeding their babies.  I understand that there are people that find natural birth and breastfeeding offensive and no doubt they will continue to flag these videos.  I have no problem with these videos being flagged, as all one has to do is click a button stating they are over 18.  But I see no reason to delete them entirely.  Giving birth and breastfeeding a child are NOT obscene acts.  YouTube should welcome these videos with open arms, as they are helping to break down society’s fears and misconceptions about these most natural and life-affirming activities.

 

Laura Shanley

Bornfree! The Unassisted Childbirth Page

http://unassistedchildbirth.com