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Teenage pregnancies won't be stopped by shaming young mothers Teenage pregnancies won't be stopped by shaming young mothers
(4 months later)
Teenage pregnancy. The term still sends terror shooting through my veins, even now, seven years clear of my teens. It hung over me like a sceptre, whispering: "Whatever you do, don't get yourself pregnant." It was the worst thing. The end of everything.Teenage pregnancy. The term still sends terror shooting through my veins, even now, seven years clear of my teens. It hung over me like a sceptre, whispering: "Whatever you do, don't get yourself pregnant." It was the worst thing. The end of everything.
This idea, that teenage pregnancy destroys your entire future, that it kills it dead in a baby's heartbeat, has been bread-and-butter to sex education campaigners for years. A recent campaign featuring an array of celebrities and its own Twitter hashtag #noteenpreg, has fanned the flames of fear to its own advantage. "You're supposed to be changing the world … not changing diapers," says American teen singer Carly Rae Jepsen from a massive billboard. We have seen similar tactics utilised here, tactics that shame teenage mothers for making the "wrong choice", and hint at bright futures that were inaccessible.This idea, that teenage pregnancy destroys your entire future, that it kills it dead in a baby's heartbeat, has been bread-and-butter to sex education campaigners for years. A recent campaign featuring an array of celebrities and its own Twitter hashtag #noteenpreg, has fanned the flames of fear to its own advantage. "You're supposed to be changing the world … not changing diapers," says American teen singer Carly Rae Jepsen from a massive billboard. We have seen similar tactics utilised here, tactics that shame teenage mothers for making the "wrong choice", and hint at bright futures that were inaccessible.
When the girls in my year became sexually active and the sex-education drive began, already too late, a split occurred. There were those, like myself, for whom a teenage pregnancy would scupper any chance we had at the greatness (university) that was expected of us. The "don't get pregnant" drive was focused on us and as a result, 10 years later, we are still terrified of pregnancy to the point of neurosis. You pop the morning-after pill "just to make sure", even though you used a condom. Then it's weeks of sleepless nights; one day late and you're down the chemist in a jiffy.When the girls in my year became sexually active and the sex-education drive began, already too late, a split occurred. There were those, like myself, for whom a teenage pregnancy would scupper any chance we had at the greatness (university) that was expected of us. The "don't get pregnant" drive was focused on us and as a result, 10 years later, we are still terrified of pregnancy to the point of neurosis. You pop the morning-after pill "just to make sure", even though you used a condom. Then it's weeks of sleepless nights; one day late and you're down the chemist in a jiffy.
The other girls, however, weren't told anything. I went to a school where getting pregnant in your teens wasn't anything to write home about. When your mum got pregnant with you young, and her mother did before her, it is a path that was, at the very least, normalised. It had been like that for generations in these small, close-knit communities, where your mam was a couple of doors down and your nan and auntie too; where bringing up baby could still be a group effort, whether the dad was around or not (mostly not).The other girls, however, weren't told anything. I went to a school where getting pregnant in your teens wasn't anything to write home about. When your mum got pregnant with you young, and her mother did before her, it is a path that was, at the very least, normalised. It had been like that for generations in these small, close-knit communities, where your mam was a couple of doors down and your nan and auntie too; where bringing up baby could still be a group effort, whether the dad was around or not (mostly not).
For many of these girls, university wasn't even an option, so campaigns emphasising the "future destroying" properties of having a small child were of no help. I went to a school where, by GCSE year, 15%-20% of the children were either parents or expectant parents by leaving age. Campaigns such as one featuring a crying child with the tagline, "I'm twice as likely not to graduate high school because you had me as a teen", are unlikely to have much impact on a young woman with little chance of graduating herself.For many of these girls, university wasn't even an option, so campaigns emphasising the "future destroying" properties of having a small child were of no help. I went to a school where, by GCSE year, 15%-20% of the children were either parents or expectant parents by leaving age. Campaigns such as one featuring a crying child with the tagline, "I'm twice as likely not to graduate high school because you had me as a teen", are unlikely to have much impact on a young woman with little chance of graduating herself.
So many of these campaigns fail to speak to teens. My school's attempt at parenting advice was to jump headfirst into the "flour baby" initiative, where each girl was given a bag of flour that she had to carry around and tend to, "like a baby", for a week. It was an unmitigated failure. Smaller children wandered through the corridors coated in flour, like abominable snowmen. Classmates sabotaged one another's offspring, stabbing them with pens or throwing them from the upper deck of the school bus. The year's resident goth brought hers to school in tupperware; she'd baked it into fairy cakes. Somewhat fittingly, she now appears on Facebook to have both small children and a cake-baking business. In fact, many young mums are now starting new careers, getting degrees, doing courses.So many of these campaigns fail to speak to teens. My school's attempt at parenting advice was to jump headfirst into the "flour baby" initiative, where each girl was given a bag of flour that she had to carry around and tend to, "like a baby", for a week. It was an unmitigated failure. Smaller children wandered through the corridors coated in flour, like abominable snowmen. Classmates sabotaged one another's offspring, stabbing them with pens or throwing them from the upper deck of the school bus. The year's resident goth brought hers to school in tupperware; she'd baked it into fairy cakes. Somewhat fittingly, she now appears on Facebook to have both small children and a cake-baking business. In fact, many young mums are now starting new careers, getting degrees, doing courses.
The pregnancy rate in this country is falling, not because of harebrained schemes such as my school's, but because of better sex education and greater access to contraception. The raising of the school leaving age is predicted to help too; shaming mothers never will. I had my own scare at 15, and amid the terror I felt, my dad's reaction stood out like a beacon of love and support. "Don't worry," he said, "I love babies. I'll look after it, and you can still go to university." Some of my pregnant classmates may not have wanted to go to college, but they too were party to that love, surrounded by it, even. Their babies have been brought up by packs of fierce, proud women. They show that Carly Rae Jepsen is wrong: changing nappies can change the world.The pregnancy rate in this country is falling, not because of harebrained schemes such as my school's, but because of better sex education and greater access to contraception. The raising of the school leaving age is predicted to help too; shaming mothers never will. I had my own scare at 15, and amid the terror I felt, my dad's reaction stood out like a beacon of love and support. "Don't worry," he said, "I love babies. I'll look after it, and you can still go to university." Some of my pregnant classmates may not have wanted to go to college, but they too were party to that love, surrounded by it, even. Their babies have been brought up by packs of fierce, proud women. They show that Carly Rae Jepsen is wrong: changing nappies can change the world.
These women need your billboards as much as they need a flour baby. It's those without that love, with no one to care about their pregnancies or their futures, who need help. Now more than ever.These women need your billboards as much as they need a flour baby. It's those without that love, with no one to care about their pregnancies or their futures, who need help. Now more than ever.
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