Are Shotgun Weddings the Best Answer to Teen Pregnancy?

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 19:11:00 GMT

Teen pregnancy is certainly foremost on the nation’s brain these days. With one in three girls in the U.S. pregnant before the age of 20, this is not a bad thing. But many commentators are concerned that the national dialogue about teen pregnancy that has resulted from the Palin affair has made teen moms seem like heroes. I’m concerned, more specifically, that few have questioned whether shotgun weddings between teen parents-to-be are the best way out of a very difficult situation.

The Palin family has been careful to stress that Bristol Palin and her baby father’s, Levi Johnston, will eventually get married. Bristol may have gotten pregnant by accident out of wedlock, but she’s keeping the baby and she will marry the father—so she gets a standing ovation at the Republican National Convention. In other words, there’s nothing wrong with getting pregnant as a teen, so long as the accidental pregnancy gets turned into a traditional family unit.

There is no doubt that marriage can be the best choice for teen couples who are truly in love and committed to raising their baby together. But let’s not forget that there are numerous options available to teen parents. The couple could stay together but delay marriage until they feel certain that they want to spend their lives with each other. This would improve their odds of staying together, since teen marriages are two to three times more likely to end in divorce than adult marriages. Or the couple could break up, but co-parent the baby, along with the help of both of their families.

Clearly, Bristol and Levi are under undue pressure as teen parents-to-be. “Having the eyes of the entire country staring at you because of your baby’s mama’s mama is the biggest shotgun to aim at a young man’s head,” writes Marlene Davis in the Vancouver Sun. Not to mention the perks offered to Johnston by agreeing to play the part of father- and husband-to-be. Any 17-year-old, even one who proclaims himself a “f****n redneck” who doesn’t want kids, would have a hard time making a decision based on his authentic desires in this scenario.

But what about teens who don’t have the eyes of the world on them as they navigate the very difficult decisions they are faced with after an unplanned pregnancy? Marriage, particularly the first few years, is difficult even for mature couples in their 30s, who have solid working lives and are absolutely certain of their commitment to one another. Should this difficulty be added to the trials of raising a baby at 17?

Photo: Rick Wilking, Reuters

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