Parent Talk / April 2006
Born Free, With a High Price
By Carolyn Escandon
Statistics can be dull or daunting but the implications of the statistics regarding the birth rates for young women should be downright disturbing to any mother of a young girl and a wake up call for the mother of boys.
According to the Statistical Abstract of the United States 2006, in West Virginia the percentage of births to unmarried women in 2002 was 32.9% of 20,725 live births. In Ohio, the percentage of births to unmarried women in 2002 was 35.4% out of 159,92 live births.
The percentage of births occurring out of wedlock rose from 2001, and once again nearly one out of every three (32.8%) West Virginia resident births was to an unwed mother. The percentages of white and black births that occurred out of wedlock in West Virginia in 2002 were 31.6% and 72.1%, respectively, compared to 30.9% and 77.1% in 2001. The percentage of teenage births to unmarried teenage mothers in the state decreased minimally from 71.5% in 2001 to 71.4% in 2002.
The thinking and behavior that results in such statistics is seen in homes and classrooms everyday, but parents prefer to ignore it. Kids are emotionally neglected, and searching for love. Young girls say over and over, whether or not anyone is listening, that if they have a baby, the baby will love them. Preaching at kids never works. What does work is taking the time to teach and show them respect, and to give them a model for respecting themselves.
Pregnant girls get a lot of attention while they are pregnant. That sends a very clear, very significant message to a younger sister, or a classmate.
A single mother is a role model for her daughter. Without clear guidelines and honest discussion, a daughter might simply assume that single parenthood is the only choice.
The statistics only mention girls. But girls do not get pregnant alone. The great problem that remains, the problem that must be addressed, is that boys don’t care because no one holds them accountable.
Carolyn Escandon,RN, MEd, is a board certified, advanced practice registered nurse and Clinical Nurse Specialist at the Counseling and Wellness Center, Parkersburg,WV. Call 304-422-7300 or email: cescandon@counselingandwellnesscenter.com or for more information concerning birth statistics, visit the website for WV Vital Statistics, http://www.wvdhhr.org/bph/oehp/vital02/summary.htm.
Copyright © 2005-2006 A Woman's View. All rights reserved.
Femme Fair 2006
Top • Home • Subscribe • Advertise • Submit • Distribution • Contact
Support Our Advertisers • Organization Resources • Women Owned Business
Designed by Livewire Studio
Send an Email About This Article