YouTube corrects 'context' disclaimer on abortion drug videos
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Erik Baptist regarding a correction YouTube made to its “context” disclaimer on videos ADF posted on the platform explaining the serious harms abortion drugs can cause women. YouTube made the change after receiving a letter on Monday from 16 state attorneys general asking it to correct or remove the misleading disclaimer:
“Women deserve to know the truth about the risks posed by abortion drugs, which is why first-hand accounts like the ones ADF posted on YouTube are so vital. Thanks to the leadership of state attorneys general calling out false information, YouTube has corrected its previously misleading notice. Because of the FDA’s reckless decision to end the requirement that chemical abortions be done by a licensed healthcare professional, women are now typically on their own when taking the drugs, without any direct medical supervision. That is why the YouTube disclaimer was flatly wrong and perfectly illustrates why we are suing the FDA on behalf of four medical associations, their members, and four doctors. The agency has discontinued virtually all safety protocols on abortion drugs, jeopardizing the health and safety of women.”
YouTube’s disclaimer on ADF’s videos now reads: “An abortion is a procedure to end a pregnancy. It can be done two different ways: Medication abortion, which uses medicines to end the pregnancy. It is sometimes called a ‘medical abortion’ or ‘abortion with pills.’ Procedural abortion, a procedure to remove the pregnancy from the uterus. It is sometimes called a ‘surgical abortion.’”
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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ABOUT Erik Baptist
Erik Baptist serves as senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, focusing on administrative litigation and regulatory advocacy. Before joining ADF, he was a partner at Wiley Rein LLP—one of the largest law firms in Washington, D.C.—where he employed his expertise in administrative and environmental law to represent clients on litigation, regulatory, and enforcement matters. Prior to working at Wiley, Baptist served as a senior executive service political appointee at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As the senior deputy general counsel and deputy assistant administrator, he directed EPA’s litigation, implemented groundbreaking rulemakings and policies, represented EPA and defended witnesses in response to congressional inquiries, and collectively helped oversee the work of more than 1,100 EPA lawyers, scientists, and staff. He earned his B.A. from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from The George Washington University Law School. Baptist is an active member of the D.C. Bar and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court and various federal courts of appeal.