Trying to Conceive - 6+ months

I'm familiar with this community.  It is a dying fishing town, and there are not a lot of opportunities for kids there.  Even if you want a crappy job, you don't have a lot of options, because there is a lot of competition from unemployed adults.  Eight girls, 16 and under, participated in the pact.  The rest are really just coincidences.  The girls did it because it is the one thing they can control in their lives.  You have a baby, you get an apartment and checks and foodstamps, etc.  So, it probably looked like a good deal to them.  Interestingly, most of the "fathers" are over 18, and one is 24.  It seems that they are not in relationships with the girls.  There haven't been any charges filed yet, but it is all the buzz.

It's pretty sad that this is all the girls ever saw for themselves, but it is pretty common in poor communities.  Of course it is galling to me, given that my profession is to help urban poor kids, and my lot in life seems never to have one of my own.  But it is still understandable.

Allison

I understand the mentality but on that scale is crazy.  I taught hs and ms for 8 years...and currently teach at a junior college.  It is sad that they only see the "here and now" rather than the "what could be".

Someone was telling me they got the idea after watching Juno...if that's so, let's hope it's not a trend~