Does Today's Mixed-Up Culture Glamorize Teen Pregnancy?

Like Juno, Jamie Lynn Spears, and Katherine Heigl's character in Knocked Up before them, Bristol Palin, 16 and Pregnant, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager have all faced criticism for promoting a deceptively attractive view of teenage motherhood. Have the baby, their implicit argument seems to go, and you can still look cute, have a career, and maybe even marry the father of your child.

Certainly reasonable arguments could be made that each of these pop culture icons have contributed to a softened, normalized view of teenage pregnancy. Kendall Jenner, the Kardashian half-sister and the face of Forever 21, is only 14. And the store's omnipresence in malls across the country, along with its trendy, low-priced fashions and frustratingly small sizes, certainly targets teenage girls. But as a 24-year-old, I confess that I still shop there, as do most of my friends -- many of whom are going through their first (or second) pregnancies and love cheap maternity clothes that don't sacrifice style. Forever 21 already has a plus-size line as well as a "contemporary" line geared toward young professionals. Diversifying their offerings seems more like a good business strategy than a plot to convince U.S. teens to accessorize their pregnancies.

Is it true that young women see examples of young moms and decide they might want the same for their own lives? True, Bristol Palin has parlayed her high-profile pregnancy into tabloid covers, a lucrative job as spokeswoman for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, and even an acting gig on The Secret Life of the American Teenager, an ABC Family show slammed by The New York Times as "didactic and soulless cheerleading for anti-abortion sentiments." But surely girls can recognize the unusual circumstances of Bristol's life, as well as her own admission that being a teen mom "kind of sucks."

Source: Christianity Today | Her.meneutics - Laura Leonard