Letter: Response to ‘Teenager, Student, and Mom’

To the editors of the Outlook:

14 is not the age to have babies!

Our Spanish for Native Speakers class was troubled by your article about teen moms in the February issue. In describing the circumstances of young moms confronted by the life-changing event of having babies at such an early age, the article reinforced the stereotypical views that many have of our Latino students at AHS as well as in the community.

The quotes from Ms. Ramos, such as, “For my culture, 14 is the age you get married and start a family,” are very inaccurate. We could not but be amazed at the contradictions included in this article. According to Ms. Ramos, 14 is the age to have babies, but a year later we can have our quinceañera? In addition, if pregnancies at 14 are part of “our culture,” then why do girls get “kicked out of school” when they get pregnant at that early age?

We can emphatically say that that is not what our parents and grandparents teach us. We come from hardworking families who came to this country seeking a better life for their children. Our parents encourage us to work hard at school as a way to achieve the American dream—that is our culture.

As your article presented, young ladies of all colors and races get pregnant. It’s a personal and family struggle, but as we read, they made it through. We simply want to make it clear that teenage pregnancy is not a race or culture related issue.

— Spanish Teacher Luisa Hardy and Spanish for Native Speakers students