I read an article on Mississippi's new teen mom law regarding a new law in Mississippi that requires hospitals to collect cord blood of babies born to teenage mothers for the purposes of establishing paternity. When I first read this, I had to stop and clear my eyes a bit, after all I do wear glasses so I have to be seeing things, right? Wrong! It's very true and very disturbing. According to the article, the law was designed to combat teenage pregnancy (they claim to have one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the country) and more importantly statutory rape. The supporters of the law cite teen mom's unwillingness to name the father's in certain cases, especially if they are older, for fear the dad will be prosecuted. Opponents however say it's a violation of privacy and fear that teenage males may be unjustly prosecuted if they are proven to have fathered a child with an underage girl.
I have to admit, on it's face it's dead wrong, but if we look deeper, what's the real issue? Should we applaud the state of Mississippi for trying to get a handle on a teen pregnancy rate that's reportedly out of control, or should we be concerned more about the Civil Rights of the parties involved? I'm all for privacy, but if my daughter was impregnated by someone she refused to name, I might be inclined to question the circumstances myself.
Honestly, I'm straddling the fence on this one. Teen pregnancy is nothing new and young girls have long been victims of dirty old men seeking the virginity of adolescent females to satisfy their needs. While I agree that something has to be done; there are clearly too many gray areas. Safeguards have to be in place so that teenagers having "consensual" sex aren't criminalized in the same manner as a 30 year old man that likes having sex and impregnating young girls. The law should focus more on stiffening the penalty for statutory rape versus victimizing the teen mom all over again to possibly prosecute a crime that may or may not have even occurred.
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WOW, some of these laws designed to protect people are really getting out of hand. If I was a teen mom I'd definitely be upset by it, but I understand what they're trying to do. Hopefully, this is just another one of those laws for the books and its not really being enforced. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI agree. This shows just how much we need to be involved in our communities. Our youth need guidance and support, not laws that diminish their rights.
DeleteThanks for reading!