Stanek weekend question II: Your thoughts on ad campaign featuring pregnant young men?
Click all images to enlarge…
The backstory, from an hlntv.com, article entitled, “Chicago ads stir outrage,” indicates that, among others, the transgender community that is offended:
Chicago officials have birthed a controversy with a new campaign that critics say unfairly targets the city’s young boys.
The billboard series titled “Unexpected” shows teenage males with their bellies protruding as if they’re pregnant. A similar campaign ran in Milwaukee using the provocative images and now Chicago has rolled them out.
The campaign’s message is that girls aren’t the only ones that bear responsibility for the city’s pregnancy rate, which has decreased 33% over the past decade, according to the city’s Department of Public Health, but still remains higher than the national average….
“The response has been overwhelmingly positive,” Brian Richardson, spokesman for the Chicago Department of Health, said. “We’ve seen huge increases to our Facebook and Twitter accounts and huge media coverage, which is good because the entire goal was to raise awareness about a very important issue.”…
“Can we please create teen pregnancy awareness campaigns that do not shame transgender people who become/are pregnant?” posted Jessi E on the department’s Facebook page. “Very disappointed in the Chicago Department of Public Health for doing this.”
On Fox News Chicago’s Facebook page, Sue T said: “Horrible message and image. Not a funny life event. Ridiculous. And, the life changing possibility of becoming pregnant once teens become sexually active is NOT about the temporary inconvenience of a round belly – it IS about bringing a life into this world that requires money, love, time, energy and sacrifice. Put THAT into a visual billboard, not an impossible image that won’t build empathy. OMGOSH-who came up with this????”
Your thoughts?
[HT: Manuel C.]
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
There is a good point made here. It is vitally important that teen boys and young men be led to empathize with the special problems they cause teen girls and young women through the type of sex that leads to pregnancy. I saw a boy on Phil Donahue with a pregnancy simulation attached to him. Someone commented, “He doesn’t like that.” Since it is usually males who initiate this type of sexual contact — while females bear (literally) the biological burdens of it — it is important to reach males with positive messages.
An English teacher recommended a book called “The House of Tomorrow” that was written by a young woman in a home for unwed mothers who was planning to place her baby for adoption. ”It’s not just for girls but for boys, too,” she said. “Boys might want to read it so they can know what they might be putting a girl through.”
“Unexpected” - is only a driving progressive propaganda point.
“Here, have some more condoms…”
It’s good, if it works. In it’s best light, this brings home the message that if “we” have sex, “we” get pregnant.
I’m disappointed by their faith in condoms, though.
I think it is a mockery! No one, especially a teen or young adult will take this message (whatever it is?) seriously. As a woman, a mother of two boys and a believer and follower of God, I find it very offensive. I cannot believe that money was acutally spent on this rubbish!
Most of all I doubt if it’s very effective, and there we go again pushing condoms. Condoms are not that reliable. How about abstinence? 100% effective and eliminates a lot of other physical and emotional problems too. “Everybody’s doing it” is a falsehood, there are plenty of single abstinent people out there they just don’t make good press and are no good for the abortion industry.
I just think that you’ll get teens making fun of these ads because they look rather ridiculous, rather than having them consider the message.
Victor Galipi says:
June 8, 2013 at 1:37 pm
Most of all I doubt if it’s very effective, and there we go again pushing condoms. Condoms are not that reliable. How about abstinence?
(Denise) Use condoms. Or wait.
Abstinence is advised.
I both like and don’t like this add.
The dislike portion is that they do place condoms before abstinence. I was hoping that with all the abstinence talks through the late 1990’s- early 2000’s, abstinence would be more widely recognized as a full proof method of contraception. Oh, well.
As for the like, I am glad that they are bringing the boys in on this campaign. For years, it has been pushed and pushed, and pushed again that if a woman gets pregnant, it’s her fault. She was loose enough to open her legs. She was the one to blame for what happened to her. She should have known better. Guess what? It has always, and will always take two people to make a baby, except that one time a couple thousand years ago.
I have heard women yelling at men, saying that it was all his fault. I have heard men yell at women, “How could you let this happen?” Finally, with this add campaign, it leans more towards equality, an equal sharing of the precious life that THEY made, not him, not her. I hope that the advertisers will make a better judgment call next time, when it comes to contraceptive methods.
At least it offended a “professionally offended” member of the transgender community.
That’s a good sign.
My only thought is that this is going to be one tough delivery.
“My only thought is that this is going to be one tough delivery.”
I’m literally laughing out loud lolol.
OK, Hans. You win the thread. Nobody can possibly top that.
Hans I am ROFLMBBO!
Lol @Hans comment….these signs are dumb.
The use condoms to avoid unplanned pregnancies message is just plan stupid! Those using condoms will later want to try it without condoms soon. Condoms are not even very effective in stopping pregnancy and still does not avoid std’s.
Sex is meant to be “open to God’s Will” and should be defined as the MARITAL EMBRACE.
Pete
Never miss an opportunity to blur the distinction between men and women.
LOL Hans! I love it! As one who has worked L&D, I heartlily agree with you. Childbirth is the hardest thing most women will ever do in their life (with a few, rare exceptions of women who have easy labors).
Actually, the percentages of teens through 17 years of age who have never had sex and are not presently sexually active has gone up dramatically in the last 10 years (both boys and girls) when they are given a stong complete abstinence message. 93% of teens surveyed say they should receive a strong abstinence message; not “you are going to have sex anyway”. ”No one rises to low expectations”. As BHO and Sebelius (the Tiller the killer fund-raiser) work to dismantle abstinence education and to “transform America” they are pushing “approved” PP-SEICUS comprehensive sex ed programs which only mention abstinence in 5% of their curriculums. So I think the numbers are going to start going up again. Which should make PP happy making lots of money selling sex (anyone remember their Happy, Healthy and Hot booklet and their talking genitals cartoons), selling sex products, contraceptives, abortions, STD testing and treatments. Talk about the “fox watching the hen house”? Do you wonder why they are fighting defunding of PP so hard, especially with Obamacare being designed with them in mind.
The college-age, young adults numbers for sexually activity is another thing, but you should realize that there is no abstinence education programs being taught or reinforced at most colleges and they have no “expectation” for any sexual restraint by college students/young adults. I have talked to young abstinent college students who have woke up to their roomates having sex in their room, talk about creeping these kids out. Yuk! The peer pressure is really tremendous on the college campuses.
Every teen boy should have to wear a pregnancy simulator for a day or a few days!
I bet they make fewer passes after that!
Denise lol
Why do people rant about teenaged pregnancies?
Has there ever been a time period in which the vast majority of women waited until after 20 years of age to have their first baby?
Why do ppl rant abt teen pregnancy? I wondered the same thing a few years back. From time immemorial, across the globe, the age at which a woman had her first child has universally been in the teen years, if everything goes normally (i.e., barring rape, infertility, etc.).
The answer is classism. We in the middle class and upper class see those in the lower class reproducing, and we get bothered because 1 this will be a burden on our charity, and 2 eventually we will lose power to the lower class, since the hand that rocks the cradle rocks the world.
Being in a position of power, we use our influence to try to stem this tide of reproduction. It has been a very successful campaign to develop social shame for those who have more than a couple children. The Beckhams – who have plenty of money – drew ostracism when they had their fourth child.
The Duggars always draw ostracism.
To not be obviously in the lower class and have “too many” kids is perceived to be foolishly declaring yourself as lousy as those lower-class people. When we middle class people see the lower classes with “too many” children, the charity required comes to our mind, and we also look down on them as ignorant, or uneducated, or foolish, or with no sense.
“Why do people rant about teenaged pregnancies?”
I don’t think people should “rant” because it’s unproductive and rude, but having a baby in your teens in our technology based society today severely limits your chances of economic success. It’s harder to get the parent him or herself through college, not to mention the child once they get older. And yeah, college is pretty necessary now, unless you want to be a security guard or an apartment manager for the rest of your life and barely break even.
Jack or a musician like Trent Reznor….went to high school with Rich Patrick. No college required . Rich told me every day “I’m gonna make it big one day Heather. Gotta go to Trents for practice after school .” I guess he knew what he was talking about. But I never even knew Rich made it until 10 years later. lol. He still looks EXACTLY the same as he did in high school
Drew Carey has a house one street away from me. He stays there when he takes breaks from filming The Price Is Right.
Those kids actually look like me with my shirt off nowadays.
Stupid potato chips…
LOL bmmg39!!! Too funny, probably too much information but still funny.
Big myth propagated by PP and their friend “Rahmbo” “potty-mouth” Emanuel mayor of city of Chicago. Condoms =safe sex. Can’t tell you how many “oops” babies I have run into over the years not , just with teens but adults using condoms, b/c pills, shots, IUDs, etc. even some healthcare workers I know using 2 forms of b/c had “oops” babies. But they did mention abstinence. Ad is not all bad because it means the girl is not the only one pregnant.
Pete you are right. Those who think they are in a ”long-term” relationship usually stop using condoms. And what do people consider a “long-term” relationship today? The research shows that after being in a relationship for about 3 months most people stop using condoms.