Yesterday I showed you the first of this semester’s Sex in the Media projects – and now here is the second! As part of their Sex in the Media project, my students often investigate how teen parents are represented in the media. It’s a mixed bag, frankly, with sometimes glassy-eyed-approval of the beauty and sweetness […]
Archives for teen pregnancy
Scare tactics and sensationalism don’t work
The problem is that almost everything worth talking about – certainly anything related to sex and sexuality – is probably nuanced. Scare tactics are black and white. So too much of the conversation is left out, and the wrong impression can be easily taken away. The most recent version of this conversation is about a […]
Abstinence-only funding GONE in 2010!
Bam. My world just changed. And so did the worlds of teenagers, preteens, and children across the country. Instead of abstinence-only, Obama’s 2010 budget puts $173 million into teen pregnancy prevention money. Now, while this is great (GREAT!) news, it’s not quite what I was hoping for. Preventing unwanted pregnancies (teen or otherwise) is only […]
Palin and teenage pregnancy and…everything else
This weekend, John McCain announced that his running mate would be Sarah Palin, governor of Alaska. It seems there has been little talk of anything else since that announcement…particularly since the announcement that Palin’s 17-year-old daughter is 5 months pregnant. There has been much written on the topic since the announcement, while I was away […]
The Secret Life of the American Teenager
ABC Family (that would not be your standard-fare ABC, this is a cable channel) has a new show whose “WORLD PREMIER” (oh, please) is tonight: The Secret Life of the American Teenager. It’s about a high school student who gets pregnant. My initial thoughts: Oh, please. Yes, Juno made a lot of money. But that […]
On deviancy and teenage pregnancy
We have some old friends staying with us right now with their granddaughter, who is almost one year old. We’ll call our friends the Sullivans, their daughter Hannah, and their granddaughter Beth. Here is the startling story of the Beth’s birth: Hannah was 18, and a senior in high school. The Sullivans thought she might […]
Teenagers who…want to have a baby…WTF??
Yes, Virginia, there ARE teenagers who want to have a baby. Yesterday Mommy B sent me to this story about Gloucester High, where the fad last year was to try and get pregnant. Is this a new trend? Nope. Is it surprising? Maybe, if you haven’t been paying attention. And will the school’s attempts to […]
Interview with Tina Hester from Jane’s Due Process
Karen: Hi Tina, and thank you for meeting to talk with me about your work. First, can you tell me a bit about Jane’s Due Process Legal Hot-line? Tina: Jane’s Due Process was formed after the state legislature passed a parental consent law for minors to obtain abortions. So Jane’s Due Process provides minors with […]
Books for Pregnant/Parenting Teens
Last week I wrote about a book for pregnant teens, and said I wish I had something iron clad to recommend instead. I’ve thought about that over the ensuing week, and realized that while I don’t have one single book to recommend, I do have several that when put together I think might cover all […]
Hope…Joy (and a Few Little Thoughts) for Pregnant Teens
Rachel Brignoni set out to write a book to help pregnant teenagers and teenage mothers think through what they want in life and then go out and get it. And she stayed true to that goal throughout this little blue-covered book. I really like Brignoni’s premise, her goal. Pregnant and parening teenagers need all the […]
