Mother of baby in controversial pool video speaks out

A controversial video of a baby struggling to stay afloat in a swimming class has caused discussion across the internet.

Now, the mother of the baby is speaking out.

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Keri Morrison made an appearance on "Fox & Friends" Saturday to defend her decision to put her daughter in the class.

The video shows the baby -- 13-month-old Josie -- in a pool, guided into the water from the steps with a shoe.

As Josie reaches for the shoe, she falls into the water facedown. After a few seconds, she flips herself over but appears to struggle to keep her head above water.

Morrison said she put her daughter in the class to prevent what happened to her 2-year-old son, Jake.

Today.com reported that she and her husband, Roarke Morrison, lost Jake in a drowning accident when he slipped out of family member's Orlando home and fell off a dock November 30, 2013.

Morrison began an organization called Live Like Jake in response, raising awareness about drowning prevention.

"My son is no longer here because he didn’t have these skills," she told "Fox & Friends." "To me, I’m protecting her, and that’s what a parent is supposed to do: Protect her child. I feel like I failed my son, and I’m not going to fail my daughter."

Ashleigh Bullivant, instructor at Infant Swimming Resource, where Josie learned the technique, told "Fox & Friends" that Josie had lessons over the course of four weeks when she was 6 months old.

"Our students at Infant Swimming Resource are taught everything incrementally in a very gentle way and honors the way they learn physically," Bullivant said.

According to its website, ISR has saved over 800 lives with its course.

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