Georgia is seeing unprecedented lows in the number of teenage girls becoming mothers. In just one year (2011–2012), the teen birth rate decreased by 12 percent, giving Georgia the second-largest decline in the country, according to the Center for National Health Statistics The low rates are attributed to more teens having access to sex education, teens waiting to have sex, and increased use of contraceptives among teens who are sexually active.
But the good news isn’t good enough. Teen pregnancy rates for Latina girls are considerably higher and, historically, have always been so. In Georgia, the teen pregnancy rate for Latina girls 15 to 19 is nearly 75 per 1,000, well above the state rate of 50 per 1,000. And for Latina girls 18 and 19 years old, the rate jumps to 127 per 1,000.
Given Georgia’s large and growing Latino population and the numerous negative consequences associated with teen pregnancy, the importance of concentrated efforts of culturally appropriate services and interventions cannot be stressed enough. Working to meet the tremendous unmet health, education and social needs of Latina youth and their families is a delicate and complex balance.
Poverty, insufficient sex education in communities and schools, social isolation, language obstacles, legal status and religious and cultural beliefs are often barriers to seeking health services. These are just some of the issues influencing and fueling teen pregnancy in Georgia’s Latino community. Moreover, traditionally, sex and sexuality are not discussed in Latino cultures. Parents often shy away from discussions with their teens, and individuals shy away from discussing sex with their partners.
The Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential reaches 1,200 Latino girls and boys a year by working with schools with the highest Latino enrollments in Fulton, DeKalb, and Gwinnett counties. The group offers the FLASH (Family Life and Sexual Health) curriculum. FLASH addresses age-appropriate physical development, sexual health, abstinence, interpersonal relationships, body image and gender roles for 5th to 12th graders.
The Georgia Campaign works closely with school administrators, social workers and counselors to integrate the program into the academic schedule. Parents review the curriculum and give approval for their children to participate.
The problem of teen pregnancy is in every zip code. So is the solution. Teen pregnancy prevention requires intervention early and often. Given the unique social factors young Latinos face, the Georgia Campaign believes a large part of the solution lies in making age-appropriate, medically accurate information available in the schools.
Fifty-four percent of Latina teen mothers drop out of high school, compared with 34 percent of teen mothers overall. Seven in 10 Latina girls say they wish they were getting more information about abstinence and contraception. They should get it. Georgia needs more health education programs in schools.
Vikki Millender-Morrow is president and CEO of the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential.
