NYC Ads Target Teen Pregnancy With Shaming Tactics
NYC ads are using shame tactics in an attempt to thwart teen pregnancy. The New York Human Resources Administration agency recently launched a campaign of “straight talk” posters of sorrowful looking children with blunt facts about their potential futures. The information printed on the New York City ads coincide with statistics noted in a recent Heritage Foundation report previously reported by The Inquisitr.
The teen pregnancy NYC ads share dire predictions from the baby’s point of view. One poster designed to impact potential teen moms reads, “I’m twice as likely not to graduate high school because you had me as a teen.” Another poster in the New York Human Resources Administration teen pregnancy series reads, “Honestly, Mom … Chances are he won’t stay with you. What happens to me?”
Another statistical analysis appears to indicate that making contraceptives readily available to teenagers will help reduce pregnancy, according to MSN. Although condoms and birth control pills would help reduce the numbers of babies born to teen parents, the contraceptives do nothing to change the mindsets of teen girls with a desire to have a baby.
Even when free or low cost birth control options are available, some young women purposely choose to have a baby for a variety of reasons. Some studies and interview with teen mothers indicate that the choice to have a baby stems from the desire to have something of their very own to love or as an attempt to keep a boyfriend.
The NYC teen pregnancy ads may help address the mental and emotional aspects involved with the decision to bring a baby into the world. The ad campaign has been criticized for using shame tactics instead of offering sexual education advice, Salon reports.
The teen pregnancy posters have been placed at bus shelters and subways stops around New York City. At the bottom of each New York City ad there are instructions to text “NOTNOW” to a specific number to discover the “real costs” of teen pregnancy.
When someone texts the number, they are redirected to a game with a series of scenarios related to the lives of teen moms and their babies. In one game screen, a character named Anaya has been shunned by her parents and cast aside by the baby daddy. Another teen pregnancy NYC ad campaign scenario featured in the fame depicts a teen mom concerned about looking fat in her prom dress and wondering whether or not she should still attend the big dance.
What do you think about the NYC teen pregnancy ads?
