Teenage pregnancy is a fact of life, accidents happen - but 17 girls, all 16-years-of-age and under, from Gloucester High School in Massachusetts are expecting, and it's allegedly no accident. They may have entered into a "pregnancy pact," and some experts are saying that teen star Jamie Lynn Spears and the recently popular film Juno are to blame.
Last December, after Jamie Lynn Spears revealed she was pregnant, she became one of the most "Googled" stars. There was a definite frenzy for a desire to find out anything and everything concerning her pregnancy, relationship status and when her baby would be born. She and boyfriend Casey Aldridge welcomed their daughter Maddie Briann this past Thursday, June 19, and the internet frenzy continues. As well, after the movie Juno was released, it was thought that it somehow "glamourized" teen pregnancy, and some kids came away with the thought that being a teenage parent wasn't that big of a deal.
Now, comes this disturbing pregnancy pact among teen girls, who want to purposely get pregnant. And one of the fathers (allegedly) is a 24-year-old homeless man - now that makes my skin crawl. He's being sought after by authorities - he may have impregnated more than one of the underage girls. From Time magazine:
As summer vacation begins, 17 girls at Gloucester High School are expecting babies — more than four times the number of pregnancies the 1,200-student school had last year. […] All it took was a few simple questions before nearly half the expecting students, none older than 16, confessed to making a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together. Then the story got worse. “We found out one of the fathers is a 24-year-old homeless guy,” the principal says, shaking his head.
Parents in Gloucester are putting blame on movies like Juno and Knocked Up, a bad economy, broken family homes, difficulty in being able to access birth control and children who've somehow lost their way.
Sarah Brown, chief executive of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy said this about the situation:
"Baby bumps get written about the same way designer handbags do. It's just one more lifestyle choice, just another personal expression: these shoes, this bump and that handbag. It's not surprising that teenage girls can get confused or even seduced by the allure of celebrity pregnancy."
The superintendent of Gloucester Public Schools said, that he has no confirmation of a pact, but added:
"What we do know is there was a group of students being tested for pregnancy on a regular basis, which would suggest they were not taking steps to avoid becoming pregnant."
I hope these girls get the care and help that they'll need - having a baby as an adult is hard enough, and teen pregnancy is not a walk in the park. Sure, there are lots of teens who get pregnant, have the baby and turn out to be great parents, but it changes your life and these girls may not realize that. There will be many struggles ahead.
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