Critical issues about pregnancy and parenting. (From the President).

I came into the field of sexual health through my work on adolescent pregnancy-prevention programs, and, like everyone else in this field, I have been pleased to see the teen pregnancy and birth rates drop in recent years. Many factors have likely influenced such declines, including fewer teens engaging in sexual intercourse and more teens using condoms and other contraceptive methods.

One factor that is often overlooked is the impact of the economy on teen childbearing. Carol Cassell, who directs the consulting firm Critical Pathways in Albuquerque, NM, points to studies showing the economic reasons teens become parents. These factors include a lack of confidence in the future, limited opportunities, and the perception that they are destined for a life without economic security.

ECONOMIC VARIABLES

I, like many of my colleagues, believe that the strong economy of the late 1990s was in many ways responsible for the reduction in teen pregnancies and births.

As our economy falters and the future seems less certain, we must thoroughly examine the relationship between adolescent childbearing and socio-economic variables such as poverty, race/ethnicity; class, opportunities for academic achievement, and the possibilities of a secure financial future.

In examining these issues, it is important to realize that adolescent pregnancy does not affect all communities in the same way. For example, while African American teens have experienced the greatest recent decline in pregnancy rates, rates among Latina teens have not declined as significantly.

SUPPORT FOR TEEN PARENTS

The need to look at race/ethnicity, poverty, and class together is particularly apparent in light of upcoming debates in Washington over TANF funding. Federal and state rules for TANF--officially known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families--affect the ability of teen mothers to receive the support they need to finish their education, find employment, and delay repeat pregnancies.

Young people growing up in poverty need to possess not just average but above-average psychological resources and strengths to avoid becoming involved in a teen pregnancy. It is our job as advocates, educators, and caring adults to ensure our youth find such resources. TANF-funded educational programs, as they are currently conceived, may not be the way to reach this goal.

PROVEN PREVENTION STRATEGIES

Research has proven that teen pregnancy-prevention initiatives that incorporate aspects of youth development programs and include information about sexuality can help break the cycle of adolescent pregnancy, childbearing, and poverty. Yet the federal government continues to spend its welfare dollars on unproven abstinence-only-until-marriage programs and a host of other initiatives designed to decrease the number of "out-of-wedlock" pregnancies.

Instead, we need to support our young people and their families and provide them with culturally appropriate prevention programs that implement proven strategies to reduce teen pregnancy.

NUMEROUS POLICIES

With the reauthorization of TANF funding scheduled for debate in Congress over the next few months, many important issues related to pregnancy and parenting are likely to receive attention. For example, in addition to the welfare funding dedicated to abstinence-only-until-marriage education, the federal government is putting aside $300 million of this money for programs that promote marriage.

Supporters of this program point to research that suggests children in two-parent families are less likely to live in poverty as the reason that marriage is vital. It is short-sighted, however, to believe that marriage in and of itself is a cure for poverty. And in funding such programs the federal government seems to be making a broader statement about the ideal family structure.

TANF programs are not the only place where federal and state policies weigh in on issues such as what constitutes a family, who can be a parent, and how pregnant women are treated. In recent years, states have implemented policies that restrict the opportunities for gays and lesbians to become parents, limit minors' access to prenatal care, and punish rather than treat pregnant women who use drugs.

A NEW VISION OF HOMOSEXUAL PARENTS

Recently, comedienne and television talk show host Rosie O'Donnell challenged one such policy and, in so doing, challenged our society to reconsider our vision of an ideal parent. O'Donnell publicly stated that she is gay and that she and her same-sex partner of four years are raising three children together. O'Donnell made the decision to come out to draw attention to a same-sex Florida couple who is taking the state to court after it denied their right to adopt one of five foster children they have raised.

In her first televised interview on the subject, O'Donnell articulated to ABC commentator Diane Sawyer what gay rights advocates have been saying for years--that children thrive in homes with parents who love them and love each other, regardless of the parents' gender or sexual orientation. Throughout the interview, O'Donnell compared the loving environment in which she is raising her children to her own difficult childhood in a heterosexual household. She pointed out that sexual orientation is not related to the ability to be a good parent.

O'Donnell acknowledges that in today's society the children of gay parents face unique challenges but that these challenges are based on societal pressure and intolerance. The solution, therefore, is not to prevent gays and lesbians from becoming parents but to encourage acceptance for all kinds of families.

It took courage for Rosie O'Donnell to call attention to her personal life knowing that some of her fans will not approve and that it may affect her popularity. However, she chose to take this risk because she felt she could put a familiar face onto an unfamiliar concept and hopefully change how this country envisions gay parents.

CHALLENGES FOR THE FUTURE

I have spent most of my 20-year career as an advocate for young people, and I feel that addressing these issues of pregnancy and parenting is vital for the future of our youth.

While we may have made progress in some areas, such as broader acceptance of homosexual parents and declines in the adolescent pregnancy and birth rates, we cannot become complacent. We must create policies based on research rather than ideology and design programs that promote healthy families.