Too many teen pregnancies and single motherhood in the Hispanic community?

Question

Why is it so widespread? I see so many hispanic mothers with many children by different daddies. Why do they put themselves in such situations? I also see the younger generation follow the same mistake. Why do they think that they are different from those before them, yet end up in the same mistake? Why don't they put education and family stability before having children?

Answer 1

I believe that teen pregnancies and single motherhood are more common in specific areas where education and family stability aren't as common.

Not in a specific race.

Answer 2

There are many, many reasons for them. Everyone that answered this question seriously probably has some grain of truth in what they're saying. Social sciences are a complicated thing. But here's my contribution:

Because there's so much new immigration, and a lot of it is not very planned (people trying to quickly escape bad political situations) so they don't have time to learn English beforehand, a lot of Latinos are in poverty.

There's a definite link between teen pregnancy and poverty. Most contraceptives are expensive, and the condom really should not be used alone. Many Latinos live in the South, near the border, where schools favor abstinence-only education if they have s*x ed classes at all.

As someone else mentioned, a lot of people in the Hispanic community are Catholic, and the Pope has only just recently acknowledged that it might not be that much of a sin for AIDS-infected people in Africa to use a condom now and then-- he's not about to let just anyone use them. Because of this, a lot of Latinas resort to "pull and pray," which can actually be somewhat effective but which almost NEVER works for young people (boys have a bad sense of when they're going to come).

So a big part of it is poverty and location, and not a small part of it is religion.

I'm Latina, and while I'm not going to save myself for marriage, I've done my research; when I DO eventually have s*x, I will have proper protection and I'm not going to let myself be a statistic. :) Then again, I'm a suburbanite, so I've had a lot of advantages that others have not.

Answer 3

Teen pregnancies are an ideal candidate for adoption.

I dont believe teens have the experience to be parents, they are still children themselves.

One of my morbid fears in high school was getting someone pregnant and s******g my life up, i always carried condoms in my wallet, and when in a comitted relationship made sure my partner was on Birth Control.

Answer 4

Great question with an easy answer.  It's not just the hispanics.  Add the monkeys and Hmong too.  It's a CAREER CHOICE!  They cannot wait to get pregnant and start collecting welfare and government housing and food etc..  They don't have the education or skills or most importantly, the WORK ETHIC to make a life for themselves so they just get knocked up and have hard working white people take care of them.  The more babies they have, the bigger the welfare check is.  And it benefits them to NOT know who the daddy is because welfare will give more money and be more consistent with the payments.  Like I said, it's a career choice for them.  To them it beats getting up to an alarm clock and going to work everyday.  And yes, I'm one of the suckers that pays a TON in taxes and feeds them whether I want to or not.  But I do have a nice house and car and clothes and 401K plan and go on some serious vacations so that's just my choice.

Answer 5

Because they haven't been taught from an early age what is proper behavior and what is good for them .  They've had no parenting or bad parenting . That goes for all these unmarried teen mother out there ... black , hispanic , white .

Answer 6

Hispanic only? Not where I am from, I see this in many races- but many Latinos are Catholic, Catholics do not use birth control. Also, Hispanics are now the most opressed group ere in the USA. Latin people are treated poorly and with prejudice, a lack of money leads to the desire to have family even if you say it is not the best decision, it is a biological imperative to reproduce and oddly this happens most to those in most need- if interested you could read up on some biology and cultural anthropolgy, reports show that those in the harshest environments may lose children at a young age they may die without all the luxuries, like medicine. It is imprinted in genetics to keep the family alive. More kids means more people to help support. Sure these worked far better back in an agrarian and agricultural based society, but certain traits remain with people. What kind of education do they get? Also, some research shows Latino community is more male dominated,  machismo- and if the men want it-they get it. Finally, a lack of adequate love and self esteem, most have to work night and day to provide money to survive and with mom and dad gone children feel alone and what they see is the chance to have someone love them. Are you saying you do not see this in African American community? Once the Latino community starts demanding rights, perhaps the education and stability you mention may come to be. The Hispanic people are quiet, they do not have protests often and people treat them poorly. If you really want to know the reasons and/or want to help change this why not  try volunteering in the community. These people come from a rich culture-Mayan, Aztec, Inca and lost some of this heritage, see how our on Native Americans have alcoholism after being shoved away.  Perhaps white people are just so non s**y and stiff- we have less s*x and less kids lol  ( I am white btw).            

Answer 7

Although I wasn't raised as a part of the Hispanic culture, I've had many friends who were. Their attitude towards birth control is very different than mine, and therefore they get pregnant more often. When I became sexually active at 19, my first move was to get on the pill as soon as humanly possible and use condoms until the pill took effect.  If I got sick,etc. during the month, we used condoms for that time. Now, I have an IUD and no worries! ;) Contrast that to my friends who were Hispanic, African American or White from lower income neighborhoods. There were a lot of "oops, I didn't use a condom" situations, and there wasn't a whole lot of drive to take the pill regularly. Accidents happen to even the most careful people, but proper education and emphasis placed on safety makes a world of difference. I think that they're not as worried about getting pregnant because it's a norm in their communities. Before you accuse me of being a racist, I'm half Latina. It's all about cultural norms, community expectations, and s*x education.  

Answer 8

I don't agree with several answerers here saying that teen pregnancies just happen to certain area but not certain races.  What about Asians?  Which area do people find whole bunch of teen pregnacies and single mothers in Asian communities?  It obviously happens to certain races than certain areas.

It is the family education and cultural that create such phenomenon, plus the usa welfare system which also  encourages teen pregnacies and single motherhood.

It is unusual for people to see a 19 years old single mother with 3 or 4 kids living on the government assistant program.  Her boyfriend, the kids dad has no plan to legally marry her in order to avoid the discontinuous of the single mother benefits.  

Aren't they and their parents ashamed of what these teen mothers doing who have been adding to the country such financial burden and have the tax payers to pay to raise their kids instead of they pay to raise their own kids.

Answer 9

Lack of education and access to contraception.  

Answer 10

There are too ,many teen pregnancies in general.  This isn't something that is restricted to one race.  I think the more the parents are good role models the less we will have this issue out there.  It all starts at home.

Answer 11

I think it is poor parenting that gives kids no future to plan for and no experience of a married couple waiting until they get good jobs before having kids. Some 'cultures' don't value education and this is one of them...but a good education gives you the possibility of getting a job that pays enough to live decently and for a man or woman to support a family.  

Answer 12

There has to be a drastic change in their way of life to stop it.  

Answer 13

Well in my experience is that most Hispanic dads are too overprotective of their daughters so when they (daughters) have the chance they take it, usually doing it with some stupid immature boy who's not ready for a baby. Also for most boys in the Hispanic race Having s*x with girls is more encouraged than not. I'm only saying this from personal experience and what i've seen.  

Answer 14

Surely this question is a joke.

How many do you consider to be "too many"; some consider 1 to be "too many"

"Why do 'they' put themselves in such situations"? I'm assuming that the 'they' is the mothers? Why is it "they're" responsibility? Why don't you ask where the fathers are? the so-called "Hispanic community" runs to a different culture and different ideologies than the white American male, Abortions may not be allowed for religious or social reasons, "male privilege" (that is men having access to their wives/girlfriends for s*x regardless of consent for the girlfriends/wives) may still be acceptable, women may not be as accepting of domestic/family violence as the rest of society.

There are far too many possibilities to list. Usually on this forum these questions seem to be posed as "moral" issues (saying that particular minorities are "less moral" than the general population). If you are assuming that this is a "moral issue" then you should do a sociological study on it and find out, I would say you would be surprised at your findings (I would bet that your findings would indicate strengths in this particular minority group that causes what appear to be weaknesses in your eyes)

PS I am counting on getting quite a few thumbs down for this.

Answer 15

Its not just hispanics its all races and in my opinion women feel so much for the need of love that they think what they are doing is love by creating babies, but not fully judging the man they are having babies with