Teen Pregnancy- New York City Ads

Written by   Stephanie

It’s been years since the controversy started. While this is a very interesting topic to me, I never really got the chance to discuss it with anyone. When I first saw the ads in New York, I didn’t know what to think. All I knew was the fact that I was the mother of a 2-year-old boy, whom I’ve had as a teen.

I tried to imagine what my reaction would have been back then, had I seen the ads while I was pregnant. Perhaps it would have made me feel fearful, hopeless, alone. Perhaps it would have further confirmed my intentions of becoming a mother. Until today, I still wonder, with no success of a solid answer, what effect it would have had on me. However, there are many others who were deeply affected by these ads and it’s thus fair to discuss.

In 2013 and 2014, NYC trains, buses as well as bus stops displayed the ads below regarding teen pregnancy.

They were part of an initiative by the NYC Human Resource Administration, specifically the Department of Social Services to prevent teen pregnancy. Soon after their display around the city, a vast majority of residents were rather dismayed as people felt these ads offended young pregnant teens and mothers who had children at a young age. In addition, the criticism pointed to the direction that there were better strategies to help prevent unwanted pregnancies without the need to antagonize young parents.

Click here to read The New York Times article on this topic.

In a later article, The New York Times stated that a decrease in teen pregnancy in America can be credited to the popular MTV show “16 and Pregnant.” According to the article, although many critics believe that the show might portray teen pregnancy as normal and customary, they believe that in turn, seeing the reality of being a teen mom through the experiences of young girls can have more impact than most public efforts to decline teen pregnancies. You can find the article here.

Planned Parenthood condemned the advertisements by stating they displayed “stigmatizing, fear-based messages” and demanded they are taken down. Organizations collected signatures to ban the ads saying that thanks to these counterproductive efforts, the stigma on teen parents have once again been revived.

Join the Conversation:  Let me know in the comment section what you think about these advertisements in NYC trains and buses.  Did you find such posters helpful or offensive? Have you seen these ads or similar ones in your city? What was your reaction?

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