Teenaged mothers

22.FEB.08

Editor: Teenage pregnancies are indeed a problem in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. This, we must recognize, has contributed significantly to the social problems in our nation. I am of the opinion that violent crimes are one of the major results of teenage pregnancies.{{more}}

You may wonder how this can be so. Think about it carefully, ladies and gentlemen! When girls that are not yet full adults become pregnant, then they themselves are still children and cannot handle the stress associated with training effectively a child. Many times they become single parents and so those children are either left to the care of the grandmother who herself in most cases is a single parent. So those children grow up without correct guidance and affection. So they are unfulfilled and search for love and attention.

So to get that attention and affection, they become part of a gang, they become prostitutes, some go on drugs and as a result many end in a life of crime. Because their mothers cannot give them the attention they so desire, for they themselves are looking for love and affection, since they are still young and in most cases are single parents.

The teenaged mothers go on to become mothers to many children. By the time they are twenty-five years of age, they would already have had three of four children. These children are brought into an atmosphere that is not the best.

As a result of teenage pregnancy, it gives rise to financial problems and so causes stress and frustration which can lead to violent reaction. So drugs and guns become part of the lifestyle. Death and mourning follow. That’s why so many of our men are locked away in prison and not making a meaningful contribution to society. Many are also dead.

Space is limited; therefore I will not go into more detail about teenage pregnancy. But I will call upon all of us as Vincentians to alter our lifestyles. Look at our own life and the direction we are taking. Get down on our knees and ask the Lord to guide us as individuals to make the right decisions in life and to live our lives for Him.

Indeed if we fail to take heed, we would continue to reap the consequences of our irresponsibility and we would have no one to blame but ourselves. It is time that we minimize the teenage pregnancies and so minimized the crimes in our nation.

Kennard King