Gloria Malone is a fearless advocate, freelance writer, college student, and blogger at Teen Mom NYC.com where she writes about life as a teen mom and provides encouragement to other teen moms to beat societal stereotypes.
The controversial photos that some visitors took at the exhibit are not only troublesome because they disrespect the art, but because the mocking and dehumanization of the Black female body has a long history in our society.
Groups that believe preventing teenage pregnancy is achievable through expensive public service campaigns fail to realize that they would do much better to support teen parents and their families.
Researchers and the general public may be unable to agree on teen pregnancy shows' contributions to society, but what we all can agree on is that these MTV shows present tired tropes about teen moms that are harmful for young girls.
A Nebraska judge recently ruled that a pregnant teen in foster care could not have the abortion she was seeking. Many people have pointed out the irony of her being too young to make decisions, but old enough to parent—but the issues at stake here go much deeper.
I never quite understand how to answer that question. My immediate response is usually, "Sex—unprotected sex, to be exact." However, the real answer is far more complex, and some individuals may see my reasons as "excuses" so I usually don't bother to explain it. But I will now.
In a strange turn of events and circumstance—being pregnant at 15—I found I suddenly had my life in my own hands. Finally people wanted to know what I wanted. Four days before my sixteenth birthday I became a teen mom, by my own choice.
The Bloomberg Administration and NYC's Human Resources Administration have launched a campaign whose purpose seems to be shaming and stigmatizing teen mothers. But politicians and older generations are the ones who should be ashamed for their failures to provide meaningful sexual health education or to address the social conditions that lead to teen pregnancy.
