The Pro Teen Sex and Unwanted Pregnancy Movement

On this 'National Day to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy,' I thought it would be a fun exercise to compare the sexual activity of teenagers and their pregnancy rates in the most pro-choice states with those of the most pro-life states. I used NARAL's rankings to determine which were the best and worst states on choice. (Simply, those that scored "F" are the worst and those with an "A" are the best). I then filled in the state data for each from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, the National Day sponsors, and compared the pro-choice states with the pro-life states.

Which side is actually doing a better job?

Conclusion: one side has a lot more to celebrate. Turns out pro-life states, those that are prone to tell kids that abstinence is the only proven contraception, and discourage use of actual contraception, then wag their finger at the less "morally superior" states, are where high schoolers are:

· more sexually active

· more likely to have had sex before the age of 13

· more likely to have four or more sexual partners.

Turns out that to be "pro-life" is to be pro-your-young-teen-having-a-risky-sex-life. In addition, the states that are witnessing the most dramatic drop in teen pregnancies are the most solidly pro-choice ones (CA, VT, HI, AK) while the ones where teen pregnancy rates are declining most slowly are anti-choice (NE, MS, WY, OK).

As this election goes from a simmer to a boil, the culture warriors will be dosing ideological gasoline on the flames. Isn't it time to call the religious right's bluff? If we measured their agenda based on its results they could only be considered the pro-risky-adolescent-sex-unwanted- pregnancy-teen-mothers-and-more-abortion crowd. They have no right to moralize and no standing to be sanctimonious -- that should be our job. They're wrong. We know it and it's time the American public did too. Pro-choice people, and most especially pro-choice candidates, have got to use the gifts of evidence we've been given (and earned). The American public doesn't want its 12-year-olds sexually active or their daughters impregnated by one of their four or more sexual partners -- but that's what the pro-life agenda is poised to make America's reality, and sadly has for too many already. There's quantitative data to prove it. One thing is for sure, the religious right is not going to mention it. Now wonder they're lying low today.

For breaking news on threats to birth control access and information visit birthcontrolwatch.org

Comments

[DramaQueen101]

The bottom line of this debate is that kids are going to talk to each other about sex. I had friends in GRADE SCHOOL who would talk about it, and that was back in the seventies! This talk leads to curiosity, and when the body starts changing and the hormones kick in, there are going to be some that will experiment no matter what. I was lucky. I had a mom who was not afraid to talk to me about these matters and educate me, but not all kids have that kind of open relationship with either parent. So, it's really not a matter of good parents vs. bad parents, it's about education and letting these kids know that they have some say in their lives. I would rather shine a light on the subject and let my kids know that there are ways to protect themselves from not only unwanted pregnancies, but diseases also, than to let them fumble around in the dark without a clue. Wake up America! This is a serious problem.

[Sciguy]

Yeah, but in the pro-life states where kids are more sexually active, have had sex before the age of 13, and more likely to have four or more sexual partners, the partners of the less-than-13-year-old crowd are relatives anyway, right? Do they count?

OKokok, I was being sarcastic. But I wonder - what's the correlation (if any) between educational levels and preteen sexual activity? Are these the same states who generate kids who can't read the labels on condoms?

[navarro]

I agree that better sex education is absolutely necessary, and I am pro-choice. However, the data you present can be interpreted in different ways. Is it possible the reason there are fewer (reported) teen pregnancies in more pro-choice states is that pregnant teens in those states have easier access to abortions? More abortions also equals fewer teen pregnancies, at least obvious ones. Again, I agree with the general premise here, just playing devil's advocate.

[cristinapage]

A pregnancy that ends in abortion is still counted as a pregnancy just as those that end in birth or miscarriage are...when anyone says "pregnancy rates" it includes every pregnancy no matter its outcome.

[bgregs]

Every pregnancy that they know about, of course......

[waxwings]

think before you post.

[rollingdivision]

This argument, at best, is superficially attractive but actually of no real interest or value. Using the same methods, one could use this type of analysis and the same data to "prove" the opposite. Coincidence correlation causation or chance, for these points it doesn"t matter since this is not a serious statistical analysis, due to massaged data. And the verbal argument is rift with logical fallacies, cum hoc ergo propter hoc.

[daddysboy]

This argument is the kind of thing that begins a very needed and healthy discussion of what our collective values are and what we hope to change as a culture and a nation in order to better ourselves. While this article doesn't "prove" anything it definitely begs some very SERIOUS questions that should be explored further, not dismissed entirely.

[Chris]

Ms Page states "those that are prone to tell kids that abstinence is the only proven contraception,"

Ms Page pro lifers ar not the only ones that state this, the manufactures of condoms state the same thing, so do the manufactures of birth control Pills and all contraceptive decives. None of them gaurantee there products to prevent pregancy every time.

Unless you take the Holy Bible literally, no one has ever become pregnant while practicing abstinence.

For the record I do not believe in teaching abstinence alone. I beleive in teaching our youth about all forms of birth control of which only abstinence is 100% gauranteed to work.

[TXpastafarian]

You have to practice abstinence for it to work. Those who are taught abstinence only rarely practice it before entering a marriage, many times at a very young age, simply because they want to practice the heavy petting they've been hearing about.

The question is not whether abstaining from sex will prevent teenage mothers and abortion. You're putting the cart before the horse. The priority has to be simply preventing teenage motherhood and abortion. What is the best strategy for this? Education. Literacy, sex education, etc.

The religious right have the wrong priorities and that is why their strategy is a proven failed one.

[joebaggadonuts]

I haven't seen this POV here yes so I'm adding it.

Just assume for a moment that you want a stupid public to serve you, without having to pay much for whatever menial tasks you set forth for them to do. What better way than to increase the labor pool for this work than to insist on allowing children to make choices to have children before they can support themselves? If you carefully stratify society so that these early breeders don't get anywhere near your (rich) heiress daughters, you live like the proverbial pig in sh1t, eh? Keep 'em dumb and pregnant and broke and you can get anything you want from them. That's the game here. Crying about dead babies is for the cannon fodder to make this game work.

Get it?

OK, so the short of it is I agree with Cristina. The facts show that refusing to allow young females to have well informed reproductive choice leads to children having babies before they can support themselves, let alone their family, and leads to sub optimal living conditions for them and their children. I also think that the anti-choice movement is carefully orchestrated to enhance the third-world-i-zation of the American middle class.

[nestormcdade]

I agree with you 100%! Spot-on! But I would also add that there is an added aspect of racial purity in the anti-abortion movement as well.

[JScott]

And there was a recent story about the Phillipines on this, lotsa poor women having lotsa babies and it stated that the Catholic church seems to execise a lotta influence on these issues in that country. You find a lotta that in Latin America too, again with lotsa poor children. The oligarchs (and by way of the Catholic church) just love it tho-a compliant uneducated plentiful workforce willing to work for nearly nothing. Ya know sounds like conspiracy to me. But mostly it's inhumane. Bottom line it's all about humans controlling other humans.

[Caolas]

Anyone who thinks producing teenage mothers is a good thing for society, is a sick individual.
Anyone who cares more about the welfare of an unborn child than the welfare of a born child, is also a sick individual.

[Woggles]

Is it wrong for a middle age man to impregnate a high school teenager,
if he can provide for her a nicer, better home that what she came from?
This is what happens thousands of times everyday in Africa.

[Veri]

The Nail on the Head. Marriage and relationships are more about economics than we like to admit. In Western countries, what is the most common reason sited for divorce? Financial insecurity. of one form or another.

The joke in America is that, the fancier the car, the smaller the penis. Rather, the fancier the car, the wealthier the appearance of an individual male, the more one "gets it on!" Ah, the smell of love. It is green. My opinion? Simple. We all want that 10 out of 10 stars with the opposite sex. I suggest you take the 4/10 stars and learn to live with a decent other half. This is called a reality check.

The good news? Those that are lucky to find love and last the first twenty-five are the envy of us all. Listen to the lyrics of the song "Hey Ya" by Outkast. Or, better yet, ask the question, "Why was Kanye West's song 'Gold Digger' so resonating when it was released?" Another joke, "In America, men are taught to be women and women are taught to be men."

And let us not forget the fact that, by age twenty-five, one-in-three Americans will have experienced the love of a Sexually Transmitted Disease. Some of them are incurable. One last joke for all you people who play MMORPGs. The incurable STDs are BoP (Bind on Pickup). America is a dangerous land in which to practice reproduction.

[bareischl]

Why in heaven would you bring MMORPG players into this? I mean seriously, c'mon! I'm already starting to talk to my children about sex and what not, and I would never bring an MMORPG standard of Bind on Pickup into it for them. Well, probably because I don't let them play MMORPG's (although I do quite often, keeps me from hanging out in bars and doing other socially inacceptable things as I'm a single mom). RL is not a game, nor should RL be compared to a game. Especially not with STD's. Apparently you've been playing JUST a bit too much World of Warcraft or Lord of the Rings Online. Hope that works out for you with raising your kids and informing them about STD's.

[jimdog1954]

Sorry... I've been living in a snow cave in the Himalayas for the past seven years. What the hell are MMORPRs and Bind on Pickups? God help me...

[Counterglow]

Holland ranks among the most liberal countries in the world, especially with respect to sex and drugs. Children receive sex education from a very young age, and many varieties of birth control are easily available. Holland's rate of teen pregnancy is the lowest in the world.

When given a good education about the mechanics of sex, pregnancy and birth control, kids usually manage not to become parents. Adults who claim telling them the facts is the equivalent of endorsing sexual promiscuity are irresponsible, and should face financial sanctions for their actions because everybody else has to pay for the consequences of their foolishness.

[Veri]

Facts scare people. Especially when reinforced with graphic pictures. Some of those STDs are disgusting looking. Abstinence only programs breeds ignorance. This is like the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the U.S. military. Everyone knows the gays are there. No one wants to admit they do a damn fine job.

STDs. The gift that keeps on giving. Sometimes, forever.

[wolfgangmo]

Given that many of those who oppose sensible reasoned programs of sex education are religious and often "lead" from the pulpit, then we should strip those same organization of their tax exempt status.

For example the Catholic church owns some primo land [and they aren't the only ones]. If they can't pay their taxes, seize and sell the property.

It is time that we take back America from the kool aid kults. They are killing our kids and our future with their willful ignorance.

[dwire]

Okay-who is resposible for sex education or abstinence only after the teenage girl has her first child? After the gate has been opened,there's no turning back. I live in a small village-there are at least 10 illegitimate children in a one mile radius. One young man has impregnated his girlfriend for the 3rd time-they are now 20 and 21. Another young man has 3 chilfren by 2 different teenage mothers-he's 23. How many more children will these young people produce-they don't get married-they live off the mother's welfare benefits-they live in the grandparents homes and many young girls can't wait to get pregnant and live the lives their friends are living. The Republicans don't have to try to "dumb down" the population-they are creating a whole new ignorant proletariat. Get ready for the "abstinence only" generation.

[djk20042]

Admit it: pro-choice = pro-infanticide

You support the killing of babies!!!! You're literally the party of baby killers!! Isn't this what some of your members call the troops--who by the way are actually NOT baby killers?

[indypete]

This is exactly the attitude that got the repubs in power for their round of retroactive abortion in Iraq. Pols are using people's ignorance, fear and religious beliefs to equate birth control (never mind abortion, which no pro-choicer is advocating as THE choice or the first choice or anything but the LAST choice) with infanticide. Hysteria like this is antithetical to civilised discourse. (I reserve my uncivilised discourse for ignorant trolls).

[djk20042]

Why is it that liberals claim to be so enlightened, but they fail to understand basic science? A human being has 46 chromosomes---23 from each parent. A fertilized egg has exactly 46 chromosomes, which are totally unique of both parents. What does this mean?---That the egg is a human being, or, it's no longer HER body, but the BABY's body!

Pro choice = pro infanticide. This is a fact. There is no possibility of having a "civilized discourse" with people who advocate the killing of other people.

Let me sum up the liberal position on this---the baby is an inconvienence to the mother, therefore, it is OK to eliminate it as an undesirable. That logic justifies euthanasia, genocide, etc. Have I left any out?

[newshawk14]

djk20042, the article is about whether one is better off with some sex education or not. Abortion
is never even mentioned. Learn how to read, before you began to vent.

[djk20042]

It was mentioned in the blogs, and she makes a distinction between 'pro life states' and 'pro choice states'. I did read the article, did you?

[BookQueen]

No, the article is about the rates of teen sex and pregnancy in states with stricter laws about abortion. (The article does not tell what exactly the laws are, just that NARAL doesn't like them.) The author of the article tries to bring in sex education, but she does not actually know what sex education is being offered in those states, she is just assuming it must be limited because they states are restricting abortion in some way.

This is a misleading article. The author seems to have let her biases interfere with her logical abilities. She might actually have a point, but she needs to show some research to prove it.

I don't support abstinence-only education. We don't need another generation dying of AIDS. But when someone puts forward a weak argument like this article, they make it easy for conservatives.

[kardwell]

The Pro-Choice is the ONLY movement that supports and fights for intelligent sex education, proper health care for women, and accessibility to contraception. Our strategy is both life-affirming and realistic.

[djk20042]

Let me sum up the pro-choice position again---the baby is an inconvienence to the mother, therefore, it is OK to eliminate it as an undesirable. That logic justifies euthanasia, genocide, etc. Have I left any out?

[jrockbg]

So even if I wanted the government to decide what is proper to teach my kids about sex, the only way to do so is supporting the "kill babies" movement. No thanks, I'll pass.

[joebaggadonuts]

admit it: Anti-choice is anti-freedom and economic repression of young females you want to enslave.

[Veri]

Mormon comment incoming! The FLDS in Texas. You must have seen the news stories somewhere. Yes?

Keep the women in the kitchen. Barefoot and pregnant. The wealthier the individual, the more the possessions that are wanted. Religion reinforces the practice of women as possessions. Truly disturbing. Sexual slavery. McCain has a pretty (?) and young (?) wife. Virility. Guns. Sex. And Violence.

Women want it to. The display is just different. Pool boys anyone?

[djk20042]

It takes 2 to tango.

[wolfgangmo]

I just want your religious experience to remain your religious experience and not become everyones cross to bear.

The problem I have with you "religious" is that it seems you believe that the bible is a wonderful set of rules for living ... for you neighbor, but not for yourself.

Faithful who live in glass houses should not throw rocks.

[SonofLiberty1]

More bogus information I see?

Not every teen does it, and those who don't don't get pregnant.

Maybe sexual relations have a place inside marriage and not outside.

Ever think of that?

Maybe there are terribly good reasons for it too?

Guess most of the me, me, me generation, haven't figured that out yet.

[Geoffreys]

So, ... Drrrr ... only teens that have sex can end up getting pregnant. Thank you for that insight - at least the rate of virgin birth isn't on the upswing.

As for the rest of your comment, did you even read the pretty little words contained in this blog of did you just decide to impose your wisdom on the ignorant masses? If you read the blog, you'd realize your comments are not even on topic.

But, since I'm not part of the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do Religious Right, I'm sure I just can't possibly understand without someone of your moral caliber pointing the way.

[Veri]

Sex is a natural state of mind and necessary to the survival of humankind. One of the most powerful, if not the most, instinct in humans. Basic psychology. Hormones, one of God's lovely creations of biochemistry, usually have a stronger influence on young teenagers than God himself. Any man in here that possesses a penis not walk around during puberty with a stiffy in his pants (barring a medical malfunction)?

Just to have fun, quite a few card carrying Republicans, bastion of morality and abstinence only education, have turned out to be frauds and hypocrites of the worst kind. Or Gay. And cheating. Reminds me of more than one acquaintance while discussing sexuality. "Church is where you go to get laid. Those girls are so repressed and dirty. They do anything." or something to that effect.

[indypete]

Maybe teens will stop having natural surges of hormonal urges (oops, didn't mean to get poetic there!). Maybe the normal thought processes (as in, "I'm invincible") will stop happenning in teens. When I was a teen, I practically had a boner 24/7 (oh, nostalgia!) not because I was a bad person, not because I was different from anyone else, simply because nature causes teenage males (and females) to be horny. That's how life has managed to continue all these millions of years. Fear of the consequences doesn't enter into the equasion. It's like motocross racing... the sport is dominated by teenagers because they have no concept of the consequences. When guys turn twenty, they stop racing because they finally realise how dangerous it is.

[kardwell]

I do not see a correlation between church or state sanctioned sexual relations and morality.
Please explain...

[recless]

Please provide some kind of reference to refute the information, or are we just supposed to take your word for it? Nope, not every teen does it. The majority, however, do do it, before they get married. Sex outside of marriage existed for a good 200 or 250 thousand years before marriage came along. Maybe there are some not so good reasons for marriage. Oh, yeah, and the me, me, me generation is a product of the upbringing of a supposedly better generation...

[DharamDev]

My wife was a teen mother, and thirteen years later we remain happily married and have had several more children together. If the youth are taught that sex means having babies and to be respect this sacred act, avoiding the temptation to cheat nature by contraception, then it is very nice.

[Veri]

And does not work very well compared to scaring the crap out of them with graphic pictures while at the same time giving them a good education of how to protect themselves. After all, most overtly and covertly religious youngsters out there will have sex before marriage.

One in three Americans will have an STD before age twenty-five. One in three Christians will have experienced an STD before age twenty-five. One in three non-Christians will have experienced an STD before age twenty five. Wait. Abstinence only education increases the chance of infection due to unconventional sex.

Recent studies (look them up yourself) report that a significant number of teenagers who receive abstinence only education do not believe that oral and anal sex actually constitutes sex. After all, the focus is on virginity. Especially of the young woman. Hence, less protection. This equals more infections.

[susieq1001]

Good for you! You are very much the exception in remaining married to your teen bride.

But you didn't, as a teen, avoid temptation, did you? And neither will most teens.

[partisanpolitico]

Isn't the issue really about informed consent? Know the consequences, through education, then make your choice. And church leaders/ morality scolds? repression of a class or gender is wrong, women have the same right to the enjoyment, yes, enjoyment, of sex that men have and please remember it. oh, sacred act? don't be so freaked out about it.

[Woggles]

To be a loyal Bush Republican, you have to believe:
If condoms and sex education are kept out of our high schools, then adolescents won't have sex.

[Veri]

Bush is repressed? Or did not get laid enough while young? Therefor, he takes out his frustrations by being a teetolar, failed business leader, failed President-Puppetto, failed war leader, who endorses torture, lies, and missing emails?

I just had to take that potshot. Which reminds me, my grandmother was born somewhere around 1911. She voted for the first time in her life in 2004. She was conceived a Republican and Southern Baptist. She voted against Bush. She voted for the first time in her life to vote against Bush. She also lived in Texas. She also attended church every Sunday and often on Wednesday nights until she was too sick, sometimes, to walk and leave her house. Her statement, before she passed away, was, "Bush is not a Christian." Amen. God rest her soul.

[paganmist]

Jesus Christ, people.

Teenagers have hormones. They like to be risky. They like to kiss and touch. Sometimes things get out of control, or they're not equipped to (or aware that they can) say no.

Instead, they are being taught that the feelings are shameful, the actions are shameful - and trust me, pushing shame as a way of keeping people from doing a thing will just make them do it more. It's a perpetuating cycle.

But you know what? Fine. It's okay if you don't want to teach and protect your child from those uncontrollable urges that nature foists off upon them.

Don't try to force the rest of us to have to do the same thing.

Sheesh.

[Veri]

Control, baby. Control! A less educated population is easier to control. A President with an I.Q. of eighty-four is easier to control. More population, a less educated population, and poor is very easy to control.

Studies of past revolutions reveal that the poor are the foot soldiers. Fit to die. The middle-class are the leaders of the revolution. The rich are the losers. Unless you have no middle class.

[DramaQueen101]

A less educated population may be easier to control, but it it is also more likely to overpopulate. If you need proof of this, look at Africa.