Posted 2 years ago Comments

I really wanted to do a vlog instead of blog about this but something is wrong with my camera.  I just felt like this message would have come out better verbally than written.  There was a documentary that aired on WKNO (PBS) a week or so ago called Beyond Babyland.  The documentary featured North Memphis, Tennessee and its high case of infant mortality rates.  I was flipping the channel when I came upon it and it is so touching.  The statics they were rambling off had me in awe.  If I go into too much detail it will give away the program and I am really encouraging you all to view it for yourselves.  However, I’ll give you a brief description of what you can expect to see.  The main narrators of the film were white and lived in the “other part of town” as they referred to it and the black side of town was referred to as the “other side of the tracks”.  The Shelby County cemetery once referred to as Potters Field is now called Babyland because there are more babies being buried there than adults almost and they are buried every Tuesday and Thursday.

It is sad that teen pregnancy is on the rise and contrary to what the majority believes everyone is not getting pregnant for a welfare or food stamp increase.  Because in reality how many bills can be paid with approximately $142 a month which about how much they will receive for AFDC.  These young women are growing up in homes without fathers and they are seeking affection from males in a way that is not healthy for them.  They fall into the trap of “game/sweet talk” by older men or teen boys and they attempt to do what they feel will make the men happy.  Most of them are poor and cannot afford abortions and do not know the proper techniques/procedures to follow in child care.  Many of these young women do not have prenatal care because they do not have insurance or have hid their pregnancy to the last minute.

There should come a time when people should be able to put the race and neighborhood of a person behind them and help them because it is the right thing to do.  Our youth are misguided, misunderstood and headed for destruction.  They may be wiser in some areas but they are surely weaker.

Check your local listings to see when it will re-air.  You must view it in its entirety.   Here is a You Tube link to preview the documentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOz3HRd6Tc.

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