Dear Zen, Kathleen, and Esther:
Recently in a published Google Hangout involving different members of your organization, Moms Across America, Kavin Senapathy was accused of mom shaming. Kavin criticized the group for fear mongering and victim blaming due to their continued attempts to link GMOs to autism and other concerns you have. At no point in the post that you are mentioning does Kavin specifically address your parenting. While watching the video it appears that you are attempting to counter organic skeptics who say that organic obsessed mothers are constantly trying to shame parents who don’t buy organic. Your attempt just falls flat, especially considering that the entire organic marketing scheme is built around making parents feel guilty.
Most organic skeptics are well aware that parents who buy organic are doing so because they truly believe they are making the right decision for their children. While organic food is not safer or more nutritious than conventional food, it is certainly not more dangerous. Moms who choose organic are just wasting their money, not putting their child’s lives at risk. In some ways I feel like I should even thank the organic movement. In her book Designs on Nature: Science and Democracy in Europe and the United States Sheila Jasanoff at one point makes the argument that the reason why GMOs gained such early acceptance in the United States was because those most concerned with them had a very easy way to avoid them early on in their use. The organic movement allowed, and continues to allow, the science deniers to eat what they want without impacting the rest of the country.
Parents who choose not to vaccinate are a different story. They are putting their children at risk. They are putting other children at risk. Alternative products and services they purchase are not just a waste of money but potentially dangerous. When pro science people criticize anti-vaccination parents they really are criticizing the parental decisions they are making and the motivations behind them. Right or wrong, I can appreciate how this can be called “mom shaming”.
The science behind vaccines and GMOs currently on the market is settled. Both are safe and do what the producers say they do. The same leading scientific organizations that support the safety behind one also support the safety behind the other. The difference lies in the effect of science denial. When enough people in a developed country stop vaccination herd immunity will break down. As seen with the recent measles outbreaks, this will bring the dangers of these diseases out in the open. States will begin to crack down on vaccine exemptions, and more parents will seek protection from the disease with vaccinations.
As organic sales increase, and GMO labeling becomes more widespread, developed nations really won't feel the same type of impact. Europe and the Americas have already had their agricultural revolutions. Even corporations like Monsanto who sell a lot of non-GMO seed would survive a complete ban on GMOs. Areas of the world that have not had their agricultural revolutions will be the ones to suffer. Africa is already farming organically, and it just isn't working there. Farming with organic techniques is something rich countries can afford to do after they have already established food security for their people.
There is a difference between criticizing an idea and an individual. When you collect urine and breast-milk samples from women seeking to find glyphosate in amounts that are a small fraction of a single microgram, you are attempting to scare mothers into eating organic food. When we criticize you for that we are not making a comment about your motherhood. You chose to name your organization Moms Across America. That does not mean that by criticizing what your organization does means that we are calling you bad mothers. We understand that you have a business to run. Zen's husband works for a company selling devices that detect GMOs. In my opinion scaring and shaming mothers into worrying about GMOs is a great way to drum up some business. We are going to continue to criticize you for that, that doesn't mean we assume any of you are bad parents.
Unless of course you oppose vaccines as well.
Sincerely,
Stephan Neidenbach
