Brief Summary This book is a memoir of a famous senior project- The Pregnancy Project. Growing up, Gabby’s entire family had children at young ages, especially her siblings, in order to help her siblings Gabby was often left to babysit her siblings. This made her grow up not wanting kids. But during a biology class discussion about pregnancy, nature versus nature, etc, Gabby got an idea for her senior project, she decided to pretend to be pregnant. She wanted to fake a pregnancy to understand what her mom and sisters went through, during their pregnancies. Understand how teen moms, their moms, and their sisters are perceived and treated. “Maybe it would give me some understanding into why there are so many sad stories resulting from teen pregnancy …show more content…
” (pg. 77) “But on a more personal level, I also wanted to open up a discussion about stereotypes and statistics. Being a Hispanic girl from a family full of teen pregnancies meant that my odds of also becoming a teen mom were way higher than average.” (pg. 77) Gabby wanted to fake pregnancy to show that pregnant women could do anything. She planned to ONLY tell her mom and her, at the time, boyfriend. Her boyfriend didn't even tell his family as well, and went along with her at school; her favorite teacher, principal, and two close friends were the only ones who knew about the Pregnancy Project. She gave everyone who knew about her project a journal to write about everything they heard about Gaby. Right before the end of her “pregnancy”, when she was nearing her 9th month of pregnancy. She collected all of the information from the notebooks of the people she gave them to and she made a presentation. Her principal arranged an assembly where she exposed herself to the entire school, and she gave a speech as to why people shouldn't have doubted her, even if she was pregnant, she still has a chance to become something. Her family was there, …show more content…
She was proving stereotypes against pregnant teens wrong. In her speech during her assembly she said, “My name is Gaby Rodriguez. I'm seventeen years old and a soon-to-be teen mom, and I am a statistic. In reality, everybody is a statistic, but I moved from the percentage of teens who aren't pregnant to the percentage who are. There are many statistics out there, such as the ones shown on screen -like, annually, a quarter of a million births are to unmarried teen moms; one in four sexually active teens become infected with an STD; and 92.9 percent of Caucasians graduate, compared to 86.9 percent of African Americans and only 61.8 percent of Latinos. My purpose today is to tell you about my experience as a soon-to-be teen mom and the stereotypes and rumors that came along with that.” She then showed a YouTube video called “Stop Stereotypes”. Now.” It showed children being excluded and being whispered about, and possible consequences of stereotypes, etc. She continued, “Throughout life we are put into boxes to categorize how people see and know us. This is how stereotypes originate, because people would rather read the labels on the box instead of seeing what's inside. . . . People began to stereotype me as a pregnant teen who was irresponsible, going to get my way because of the baby, not willing to continue in school, and even, ‘Oh, I
She then immediately follows up with a way to fix it and demand respect. Shes trying to connect with the audience and shows that she has been in the same place, that she can relate. You can see that she has done her research, she uses plenty of statistics to give you a visual of what she is talking about as well as quoting people from organizations and giving them the appropriate credit. She mentions in 2005 at yale, her alma mater, 15 students sat in the admissions office until they were removed by police. These individuals were demanding changes to the financial aid policy. What those student did actually changed the policy and made it easier for families to afford college without heavy loans. This showed others that activists can make a difference, something she presses on in this
The author of this book is 21 year old Gaby Rodriguez. She came up with the idea for this project because she was told repeatedly by her brothers and sisters that she would end up getting pregnant as a teen just like all of them. I believe that the purpose of this project and subsequently the book, was to show that you do not have to live your life on the basis of stereotypes. It does not and should not matter what anyone says about you, you are the master of your life and nothing anyone says about you should change what you believe about yourself, or what you want to do with your life. I love this book, and the Lifetime movie was great too. I have known too many young girls who have gotten pregnant, and it does not mean that their life is over. If they believe in themselves and have the help and support of loved ones, there is no reason why they cannot finish school and get a college degree.
Childbirth is biological, psychological, and natural activities by which the human species grow into its family cycle and childbirth also have a sexual tradition. Beyond the emotions and the various phases that it creates, childbirth has specific criteria to be met on both man and woman. Their union must be founded on the reciprocal love, the biological and psychological maturation, and a developed sense of responsibility. Because of this, a pregnancy occurred early in life is becoming a situation full of social, economical and psychological difficulties. The birth’s pain is weighted quickly on the young and premature couple. In the United States, teen’s pregnancies from ages 15 -19 remain one of the highest situations in the modern world. It has had little chance of success because many teens are still becoming parents and this problem is constantly increasing in the Latino/ Hispanic community. Immigration, peer pressures, dropout rate, cultural difference, and economic disadvantages are main reasons behind the majority teen’s pregnancies in this community. After I explain why it’s important to reduce teen’s pregnancy rates, I will suggest some challenging yet feasible solutions to break the cycle of unplanned pregnancies.
The history in a family can influence many generations. Certain families have stereotypes about them based on family history. This is a real world situation; the movie The Pregnancy Project, stereotypes about teen pregnancy where shown, and how they affect people. In the Pregnancy Project, the use of Gabi’s background influenced people’s reactions because her family has a history of teen pregnancy.
Teen pregnancy is one of the many recurring themes that continue to be a problem in the African American community. This project will document the reasons why African Americans become teen parents, I will get to the root of why African Americans are teen parents. This is a problem in the African American community because we are perceived to be a race that has a variety of negative stereotypes behind it. These stereotypes sometimes stem from things that actually happen in the community such as teen pregnancy, as well as people’s perception of African Americans. Society is affected by teen pregnancy in the black community by there not being more African Americans furthering their education through college and in some cases through high school due to responsibilities that comes with raising a child, as well as the children of teen parents having behavioral issues and social disabilities. Children of teen parents are likely to have children as teens (Healthy Teen Network, 2006). According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (2014) only 40 percent of teen mothers finish high school, and fewer than 2 percent actually finish college by age 30.
After reviewing and seeing what many mothers and young teenage mothers go through on what seems like an everyday basis one starts to wonder what really goes on behind closed doors with these mothers. What are they really like when its just them and their baby? How do they act around certain people (family, friends, and neighbors)? What has pregancy been like for them? What is it like knowing they have no more freedom but more responsibility on their hands?
It sheds light on the challenges of teen pregnancy to foster empathy and understanding,
Red and blue lights are flashing and the noise of the ambulance impels everyone to a point where they have to look outside and observe the situation, as if a mystical force was compelling them. From what they can see, the paramedic is holding a tiny hand telling her to hold on. As the stretcher rolls by, the onlookers notice a huge lump, or ball as a few may say, under the pallid cotton covers. What they also take note of is that the pregnant woman is not a woman at all, but in fact a teenager. As some are astounded that a child is being born from a child, others possibly will look at it as a “blessing in disguise.” The issue of teenage pregnancy is affecting our society in innumerable ways and has become one of our top social issues of all time. “The latest estimates show that approximately 1 million teens become pregnant every year” (East, Felice, and Associates 1). With this high number of teenage pregnancy, it is no wonder that many authors try to exemplify this common subject matter. Katrina L. Burchett, author of Choices, accurately and effectively depicts teenage pregnancy among female adolescents living with domestic issues.
To start this off, conception is the action of conceiving a child, and pregnancy is the period from conception to birth. They both share the same meaning: the process of getting pregnant. Conception happens when a sperm penetrates on one of the female’s eggs. Then, at around day 14 of a 28 day cycle, the egg leaves the ovary, and it is surrounded by a protective layer of cells. The fallopian tube is lined with cilia, which helps move the egg towards the womb. This is called ovulation. In the next 12-24 hours, the egg waits to be fertilized by a single sperm. The sperm then swims through the womb to meet the egg in the fallopian tube. And the sperm secretes enzymes to help penetrate the outer layer of the egg. Once the
Attention Getter: Nowadays, no one is astonished by the presence of pregnant or parenting teenagers. In fact we have a fascination with pregnant adolescents which is evident in the creation of “16 and Pregnant,” a MTV series that follows the real-life stories of American youth who have engaged in sexual activity and who have realized that reproduction system works because they are or will be parents to a cute baby boy or girl. We watch this series in anticipation of the child’s birth and to witness how the teen parents cope.
“ Being a Motherhood is a choice you make every day, to put someone else's happiness and well-being ahead of your own, to teach the hard lessons, to do the right thing even when you're not sure what the right thing is...and to forgive yourself, over and over again, for doing everything wrong.” MMMMM. Being mother is one of the most blessed and the most challenging job in the world. Giving birth to a new life and making it walk through the new world holding its hands showing a good trail makes a mother victorious in her life. In this modern world women’s attitude against pregnancy and being a mother is changing accordingly. There occurs so many miscarriages and maternal death during the pregnancy. A woman should be physically, and more over mentally set to have a baby in her womb. Considering the biological fitness of health it’s said that safer age to be get pregnant is in between 20 to 29. Early pregnancy in the teenage age of 13 to 20 and the delayed motherhood age after 35 is challenging to the health of mother as well as the birth of the child causing currently social issues India.
The problem with teenage pregnancy is it requires intervention from society. This debate is from the perspective of teens, and absent from the medical, ethical, and political views on teen pregnancy. According to Jewell, Tacchi, & Donovan, (2000), teen pregnancy is not a problem for teens themselves but more of a problem for society. The large numbers of unintended pregnancies are among unmarried teens.
The concept of comprehensive social intervention has been defined as the process of identifying social problems in an attempt to eradicate them. In looking at the broad range of social characteristics and the behavior associated with teen pregnancy, it is obvious that the emphases placed on the effort to recognize and alleviate teen pregnancy can be celebrated through the effectiveness of education, family planning, and abstinence. However, the attempt to analyze and deal with the cause-and-effect relationship with teen pregnancy is an attempt in understanding the social world itself. In 2006, statistics show that there was a significant increase in teen pregnancy after a decade long decrease. The potential for understanding this increase motivates us to look beyond simple explanations for cause-and-effect behavior and to look at what interactions may be occurring between variables that result in specific behaviors or social conditions. What is it that influences behavior? In looking at teen pregnancy in the realm of the family, it is evident that a large number of family structures have evolved, or perhaps devolved, into a variety of combinations which challenge responsible parents to consistently expose their children to the role models and the types of behaviors that are important for their children to emulate as they mature. People are molded by circumstances and experiences, all of which can positively or negatively influence our behavior.
Teen pregnancies often carry additional health risks to the baby and the mother. Basically, they lack timely and suitable prenatal care hence posses a higher risk for pregnancy related complications such as the high blood pressure. The mother also risks the life of the baby due to the premature birth. The teen mother experiences a tremendous dilemma after realizing that some physical changes are substantiating her pregnancy. Mostly such teen’s lacks the courage to explain what they are going through to her parent. Generally, many perform their duties routinely as they l...
As time goes on, teen pregnancy is becoming more and more common throughout the world. So many people frown upon this whole idea. Such people act as if the teenage parents’ world is going to come to an end. Although these kids’ life is going to be making a big turn, there are many of them who are mature enough to take on the responsibilities of a baby.