Birthing video compilation removed by Facebook for containing 'adult nudity and sexual behaviour'

Facebook stated that the video violated community standards

Sabrina Barr
Wednesday 03 January 2018 10:15 GMT
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Birth Becomes Her
Birth Becomes Her (Facebook)

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A video compilation of women giving birth that was created by a birth photographer was removed by Facebook for violating community standards.

Monet Nicole Moutrie is a birth photographer from Denver.

She specialises in snapping the special moment when a baby first comes into the world, capturing the raw emotions of the parents as hours of pain result in a beautiful miracle.

In May last year, Moutrie created a video that was shared on the “Birth Becomes Her” Facebook page.

The three-minute video showcases a number of uniquely amazing births, documenting the blood, sweat, tears and love that come with bringing a baby into the world.

The video has received a phenomenal response online, with over half a million reactions on Facebook and nearing a million shares.

However, around seven months after the video was originally posted, Facebook removed it for allegedly violating community standards.

Moutrie wrote about her dismay upon discovering that the video that she’d created to inspire others had disappeared from the site.

“For some reason, after this video was viewed and shared by millions of people around the world for over six months, Facebook decided that these moments were no longer worth seeing,” she wrote on her blog.

“Even though these moments DO, in fact, follow the nudity standards.

“As one of the world’s leading birth photographers, I believe that seeing and sharing real images of birth are important.

“I have young women who message me and say they no longer feel as scared anymore.

“Seeing real images of women giving birth provides countless people with knowledge, courage, and hope.

“There are countless depictions of women that make young girls feel inferior, ugly, or lost. Can you please spend more time hunting down these accounts?”

Facebook’s community standards state that: “We remove photographs of people displaying genitals or focusing in on fully exposed buttocks.

“We also restrict some images of female breasts if they include the nipple, but our intent it to allow images that are shared for medical or health purposes.”

Since Facebook’s decision to remove the video from their site received a lot of backlash, the video has now been restored to its original state.

The Independent has reached out to Facebook for comment.

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