West Cook News

Village of Oak Park Public Health Director Theresa Chapple says females who give birth to children aren't "mothers," but rather should be called "birthing people."

Chapple referred to mothers as "birthing people" in a tweet Saturday, in which she argued Illinois schools and businesses should remain closed and masks should remain mandatory until child COVID-19 deaths reach "zero."

"Prior to COVID, my work was on maternal mortality," Chapple wrote. "About 700 birthing people die each year. The federal (government) dedicated $100 (million) to address this. We have a campaign--- chasing zero, with a goal of eliminating maternal death."

"When I hear 'only 800 kids have died of COVID' or 'virtually no kids have died' or 'a fraction of a fraction of kids have died' as rationale to end mitigations, I think all the ways medical practices and public health approaches have changed for all birthing people in an effort to prevent 700 maternal deaths," she said.

Chapple has tried to close schools and ban student extracurricular activities in Oak Park. On Saturday, a wrestling tournament at Oak Park and River Forest High School wouldn't allow parent spectators, citing Chapple's dictates.

By calling mothers "birthing people," Chapple was parroting the language of politicians and activists who are seeking to eliminate the concept of biological sex. They argue that women who dress like and pretend they are men -- so-called "transgender men"-- can also give birth, but would not be considered mothers.

Cross-dressing journalist "Katelyn" Burns-- who describes himself as a "transgender woman"-- wrote last year that the word "birthing people" also could describe "women who plan on making their baby available for adoption and don’t plan on being mothers," calling the term "gender neutral reproductive health language."

Like Chapple, Biden administration officials have sought to eliminate mention of "mothers" from federal government policy documents, including changing the name of Mother's Day to "Birthing People's Day."

Chapple's claim that "800 kids" in the United States have died from (not with) COVID-19 is not supported by public data, as there have been no studies as of yet on the topic.

Evidence from other countries suggests the number of COVID-19-caused deaths of healthy children under 18 in the U.S. is close to zero.

German doctors reported in December that not a single healthy child between ages five and 18 died in the country during the first 15 months of COVID-19 spread. The data came from a registry of all hospitalizations of people under 18 with COVID-19 in Germany.

Germany is Europe's largest country, home to ten million children and some 80 million people.

A UK study from last July reported that a total of six healthy children under age 18, out of 12 million total, had died of COVID-19.

Dr. Robert Malone, a virologist and immunologist who has studied COVID-19, said in December that "the risk of death associated with COVID-19 in healthy children is virtually non-existent, as children have significant immunologic advantages relative to the older adult population (> 65 years) which comprises the high risk cohort for COVID-19."