March 21, 2009 7:49 AM
U.S. Unwed birth rate reach all-time high: 40%
Unwed Births Reach 40 Percent, CDC Reports
Births to unwed mothers in the U.S. reached an
all-time high of about 40 percent, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) reported Wednesday. While the number of teen births is
up 1 percent, it's women in their twenties who account for the majority
of unwed births.
David Popenoe, founder and co-director of the National Marriage
Project at Rutgers University, called this bad news and one of the
greatest family changes of our time.
"Children born out of wedlock tend to have a much harder time in
life on average than children born in wedlock," he told Family News in
Focus. "I wish we as a nation were speaking out more forcefully against
this trend."
Popenoe added that many of these out-of-wedlock births are the children of people who are cohabiting.
"We know that those people are going to break up at a much higher rate than married couples."
In 1940, only about 4 percent of births were out of wedlock.
-- Devon Williams
Reported widely, but this is from CitizenLink.
Posted in Continuing chaos, Pro-Life Issues | Permalink
Comments
I think this is both good news in that these babies are being born and also sad news, too. Though it may have changed since I went through CareNet volunteer training a few years ago, this demographic accounted for the greatest number of abortions at that time. We want the best for our newest generation, and a large part of its future relies on the choices of the parents. I think most adults would concur that their lives were dramatically impacted by the choices their parents made - to be married, to stay married or to be divorced, to be loving or cruel, etc. These choices can positively affect the next generation by God's grace!
--Trying to put together a coherent thought while nursing one of the newest generation --
Posted by: JenS | March 21, 2009 12:38 PM
I agree that this is good news in that these babies are being born. That more folks are choosing to have babies without being married is a societal move that bodes poorly for the tradition of family.
I blame the media and celebrities for some of this. There has been too much made of singles choosing to have a baby before marriage making it look cool. I don't believer in a scarlet "A" on the forehead, but being unmarried and pregnant is not a great situation. I wish there were more of a trend to give these children up for adoption rather than keeping them because that would make it a good way to deal with the situation.
Posted by: Cath Young | March 21, 2009 9:57 PM
What a sad comment on our society it is that we have to qualify our comments on out-of-wedlock births with relief that at least those children were allowed to live. What's almost as sad is that these unwed parents don't realize, "Oh no, we messed up -- we need to get married and make the best of this for our child's sake!" I just can't comprehend how, even when an innocent baby comes into the picture, it's still all about what they want.
-- This message from someone who, at 20, made a stupid decision, got pregnant, got MARRIED, and made a good life for my son, including giving him six siblings.
Posted by: Michelle Potter | March 22, 2009 8:29 PM
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