A Toronto hospital has
pulled its obstetrics-themed parody video of "Gangnam Style" after a
birthing group complained it was "offensive."
Initially uploaded to
Sunnybrook Hospital's YouTube channel on Dec. 14, it features medical residents
horse-dancing through hospital hallways, flying plastic babies, and a doctor
said to be covered in "five bodily fluids."
"OB/GYNE
Style" (disclaimer: the video may be offensive to some viewers) was
removed on Dec. 19 amid criticisms from Humanize Birth, but was later reposted
by another YouTube user on Dec. 22. The group, which aims to reduce
"traumatic birth experiences" for women, is demanding a public
apology from the hospital and the University of Toronto's Department of
Obstetrics and Gynaecology (the university is affiliated with Sunnybrook).
"Some people found
this video highly offensive and considered its endorsement by Sunnybrook
Hospital and its indirect endorsement by the University of Toronto's Department
of Obstetrics and Gynaecology disrespectful towards birthing women, babies and
the birth process in general," Humanize Birth said in a statement Monday.
SEE ALSO: 'Gangnam
Style' Hits 1 Billion Views on YouTube
At the university's
request, Sunnybrook made "OB/GYNE Style" private, according to a Dec.
19 comment on its official Facebook page. Comments on the Facebook thread and
YouTube largely support the hospital.
"Excellent video
by the staff at Sunnybrook," wrote YouTube user Bill Nye. "The
hospital is great in GTA and the staff work very hard there, so a few minutes
of comedy is all good given their stressful job roles."
Others objected to the
"censorship" of the video.
"The Sunnybrook
video did not contain bad medical advice nor did it contain hate speech. This
is a free country. Please respect the right to free speech," wrote Facebook
user Onion Yazdanian.
What do you think of
the controversy? Warranted or overblown? Give us your take in the comments
below.
0 comments:
Post a Comment