TEENAGE PREGNANCY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

TEENAGE PREGNANCY - Essay Example In the past few years, pregnant teenagers have become a twisted fashion statement, a heavily sought-out fad (Moore, 2006). Now, at the beginning of the second decade of this new millennium, teenage pregnancies are increasing at an alarming rate with no decrease in sight due to a lack of knowledge being given to the teenagers. There are three common causes as to why teenagers are becoming pregnant at a shocking rate. Socially, it is ordinary for teenagers to be pressured by their peers to engage in underage sex, resulting in young pregnancies. Teenagers have the mindset that if their friends and classmates are involving themselves in underage sex, then not only should they do the same, but they feel that their actions will be condoned by the commonality of underage sex. Economically, it has been proven that teenagers from lower income neighborhoods or situations of poverty have an increased chance at becoming pregnant due to a lack of information and resources, as well as access to contraceptives (Cherry, 2001). Legally, many teenagers believe that they are old enough than what the age of consent lays down, and that they are old enough to know what they want as possible parents at such a young age. Furthermore, it is quite often that the men that impregnate the girls are unaware of how old they really are , which, regardless of whether or not the girls give permission, goes against the law of age of consent. Teenagers either going through pregnancy or making their rounds as teenage moms face numerous social problems as a result of their poorly calculated sex romps. Due to the demand of infants for their mothers, the majority of teenage moms have no choice but to drop out of school to tend to their baby. Although they do exist, very few schools offer specialized daycare facilities to take care of children while their mothers are in class