WRITE OR WONG?: Ignominious Campaign

KAYIU WONG
Staff Writer

In order to lower teenage pregnancy rates in New York, anti-pregnancy posters and billboards were recently unveiled by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the Human Resource Administration (HRA). With posters plastered all over the city’s subways, they advertise the message of abstinence and the dire consequences of being a teen parent.

At first glance, this seems like an effective campaign. With featured images of crying toddlers directly speaking to their teen parents, it indicates the difficulty of parenthood. However, the posters are receiving attention for what’s on them, not for “stopping” teen pregnancy. It captions one little girl asking, “Honestly Mom… chances are he won’t stay with you. What happens to me?” Another reads, “I’m twice as likely to not graduate high school because you had me as a teen.”

What lessons are we being taught by reading those captions? None. They hurt more than they help. Unless we believe in relying on guilt and fear to change behaviors, these ads are not effective at all.

Their dismissive tone unfairly conveys negative stereotypes about teen parents and children. The posters bear more of a negative connotation than anything else. Bloomberg and the HRA have missed the right approach by a long shot.

They should be proactive instead of reactive, such as providing alternative aspirations to teens and giving helpful hotlines or places to go for teens who are pregnant. Its focus should not be to heap shame on being a teenage parent. We all know that sometimes teenagers don’t make the best decisions. There is a fine line between sending the right message and being offensive.