I almost don’t want to write anything, but just you watch this movie and come up with your own conclusions. I’ll set it up a little for you.
The following video was part of a teen pregnancy prevention campaign in Milwaukee. With teen pregnancy rates rising, the good folks at BabyCanWait.com took strides to combat it in their area. Early estimates say the movie (along with other tactics, including a scratch-and-sniff diaper billboard) helped reduce teen pregnancy rates by 10%. I call BS, but I’ll let you watch and judge for yourself:
“Get pregnant and the next 18 years will be the hardest of your life.” Yup, get pregnant as a teen and your life is over. The kid’s father will leave you, your family will be in shambles, your son will turn in to a bully, beating up other kids in an alley, before turning into a teen with a penchant for illegal activities.
I understand the point they were trying to make – teen pregnancy isn’t glamorous. But it isn’t all handcuffs and crying on the couch with the lights cut off.
I personally think showcasing a day in the life of a “real mom” would have been more effective. Show a mom struggling to bring groceries in the house while carrying her baby in the car seat. Show a mom getting a paycheck and then immediately turning around to use half of it to pay for daycare. Show a mom doing all the little things that girls don’t think about when they think having a baby will be a good move.
What do you think? Is this PSA effective? Is it offensive?
That was pretty card core! I think I am offended even though I’m so NOT a young mommy! This scenorio could happen to a single mother period! So just saying that a young mommy would suffer such things isn’t exactly realistic. Secondly I totally agree with you about showing the other side of the coin. When my husband is out of town and I have to struggle with my three little ones I feel like a single parent.
I totally get the ‘scared straight’ tactic but there is also so much proof of successful Young Mommy’s who can speak to the realities that a new mom would go through, and it’s not all gloom and doom. Parenting is tough in general, yes adding a young age to the mix might make it difficult but there are some old mom’s who have little boys that turn into bullies!
I’m glad you did post this!
Here is my list of young mommy’s who’ve been successful
Fantasia Barrino had a daughter at the age of 17
Maya Angelou had a son at the age of 16
Aretha Franklin had a son at 14 and another at 16
Cathy Hughes (16) – Mother of Radio One CEO Alfred Liggins Jr
Ann Dunam (18) – Mother of President Barack Obama
Verna Young (16) – Mother of Andre Romell Young AKA Dr. Dre
Ann Iverson (15) – Mother of Allen Iverson
That’s just a shot list but it goes on!
That just isn’t right – I am offended – I mean I completly understand using FEAR as a tactic in preventing Teen pregnancy – but that is NO WHERE near the right way to do so. It also puts the idea in young women’s minds that IF they DO get pregnant – then they are NO BETTER than the women on those videos. So why should they even try? Istantly the babies father will disappear, you wont have ANY support from family or friends, you’ll never be able to pay your bills and your child is destined for a life of crime? I DONT THINK SO! That’s just cruel & against my moral values – you shouldn’t encourage young women to get pregnant, but let them know THAT IF THEY DO, there are options and a great support system out there for them. Hmph…disappointing.
Thank you for the post – now I’m looking for a link to email them! haha
Honestly, this is so out there that it’s kind of difficult to take it seriously. It’s actually pretty ridiculous and may not have an effect at all (especially if they know “real” young moms). Shame on them for putting together a campaign that’s actually so insulting that many teens will probably just laugh at it.
I got pregnant at 18, and my life is totally not like this. My husband and I got married, we’re living in our place, we’re both going to school, and have successful jobs. While I take offense to the stereotype, it might be better if young girls think that’s what is going to happen. Though taking precautions still doesn’t always guarantee that you’re not going to get pregnant, so at the same time if a young girl does get pregnant she shouldn’t think that her life is automatically going to turn out like the video.
ok, so that PSA is ridiculous but i must say this, showcasing “real moms” wouldn’t necessarily do much to deter kids from sexual activity. case in point, mtv has a show called TEEN MOMS which was a spin-off of PREGNANT AT 16. i watched both seasons just to see what their lives were like. the P@16 show featured 4 girls. now they have a second season with TEN, yes TEN girls!! the show cast more than doubled and after seeing this show i was like DANG! seriously? if i were a teen girl, i would NEVER want to be pregnant and struggle like that just off of the strength of watching the show. none of those girls had crazy parents or lived in destitute situations, but they certainly bit off more than they could chew.
the only girl who thrived was the only one who gave up her child for adoption. she stayed in school and just got engaged. she really is improving. the other 3 are in complete shambles, always in tears and have yet to finish school. so that says to me that more often than not, your life will be full of more hardships if you choose this route. these are hardships that ARE avoidable.
now even tho that PSA was out of this world, i will say that my mom put serious fear in me, which kept me out of a LOT of troublesome activities.
oh, i just wanted to add that while there may be 1 woman who has successfully managed to have children as a teenager, there are 2 or 3 more who do not have a support system, who live in destitute situations and who do not do much of anything to thrive beyond their situations, therefore being unsuccessful. perhaps its due to circumstance, perhaps to choice, perhaps to ignorance…whichever the case….having children at younger ages just compounds the difficulties in your life. shoot! i’m 30 with 3 kids 3 and under and this is no joke. yeah, i’m married, but i take my parental duties very seriously so it is not a cake walk. its not cute! and i think a lot of young girls think pregnancy and babies are just “cute.” i also just watched “the pregnancy pact” on lifetime and it made me sick to see how silly those girls were. but boy did they get a dose of reality when those babies came…too little too late tho
@Mrs. W – I get what you’re saying. I think the PSA is ridiculous on so many levels.
I don’t know how to address the issue of teen pregnancy prevention because I was certainly caught off guard by how much time and energy it took to be a good parent. You don’t really know what it’s like until the kid gets here. No amount of babysitting can prepare you for that. So yes, why do so many girls think it’s cute? It’s not cute, which is why I suggested they show the realities of teen pregnancy, but not make it so darn dramatic. It was too much.
WOW! That’s a bit much. I understand that they are using scared straight tactics but this is a bit overboard. I don’t think teens should be having children, they should be enjoying their youth but if they do become pregnant, their lives aren’t over. If the person has a good head on their shoulders they can get through it and be successful.
This can also scare a person to the point they become a repeat-abortionist. I knew a girl in h.s. who had numerous abortions and it didn’t seem to affect her in the slightest, she just knew having a baby was bad, but I guess the using birth control and a condom factor did not quite hit home. Preaching abstinence and/or safe sex would have been a better approach.
@Tricia – I wish we could figure out the best way to approach this – but I agree. It’s a bit much. I just don’t know what alternative pregnancy prevention methods are effective….
I think teens today may have to much free time on their hands….Seriously. If they were busier with activities, sports, volunteering maybe a part-time job would they have the time or energy to even consider pregnancy?
@Tricia – Maybe you’re right. Although I do know a ton of class presidents and head of the drama club girls who got pregnant in high school. So what is it? Let’s put our heads together and figure it out.
@ tara…yes, you never know until you’re in it. i don’t have the answers either, but i think the show (teen mom) is a really good glimpse into this world. as i said, ME PERSONALLY, would (if i were a teen) never EVER want to be pregnant after watching it!
@Mrs. W – Teen Mom is such a good show. It’s so realistic. I have had arguments with my husband that mirror that show verbatim. I saw a lot of myself in Amber, just angry and depressed about the road her life has taken. It’s a huge adjustment. That show shines a light on the hidden side of teen motherhood. What I REALLY want to see is a show called Teen Dad. WHY does it seem like every teen father is horribly inept at parenthood? I know it’s not true, but why does it seem like the majority of the time, the dad checks out? Is it because he’s not expected to hang around? It’s easier to walk away? I want to hear from the teen dads on how they view parenthood. THAT would make a GREAT show.
I actually like the PSA; I don’t think it’s offensive. However, I also do agree that perhaps a day-in-the life of a real teen mom would be more effective (I’m actually having an article in Sesi’s next issue about teen pregnancy…telling individual stories).
I guess I don’t find the PSA offensive because I think it’s what a lot of teens might need. They need to be scared because sometimes they don’t listen to anything else…speaking from experience in teaching high school for the past 5 years. I’ve had several pregnant students, and seen several of them (and others around the school) showing off their growing bellies as if they were fashion statements. I remember one day walking past a group of 3 girls, one pregnant and the other said, “OMG! That is soooo cute!” as she rubbed the other’s belly. They just need to know it’s serious. It’s not a fashion statement. It’s real life and it’s hard, especially as a teen, who probably won’t have the support of a boyfriend and/or parents.
I want to add one more thing just for clarification: I’m not saying ALL teens need to be scared, but some do, and the PSA is just a different tactic to reach a different group. I say try it and if it works, great. If not, try something else until something does.
I was really shocked at how inappropriate the PSA was. Not only do I think it was offensive, I think it continues to allow for stereotypes to be reinforced by media outlets. The scenerio presented in the PSA leads people to believe that when you have a child young, your family will fall apart, your child will end up a criminal, oh and not to mention the clear product of a “one night stand” assumption.
As a young, single mom (I gave birth at age 19), I can say that none of those things are true in my life. I think there is enough negativity surrounding being a single mom and trying to be successful- and making videos such as this one that serve as a real discouragement to young mothers rather than an encouragement to sexually active teens to use protection or just to abstain.
Life does not end when you have a child. And young woman who find themselves pregnant should not fear that their child will end up being a criminal because they were not married and they were young. Young women can be great moms. They can be successful. We need to encouragement, not continued judgment.
@Peyton – Thank you. That was a beautiful comment. I might have to highlight that as comment of the week!