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Can simply walking through racks of maternity clothes get you pregnant? Women going through infertility struggles would certainly hope so. But the YMCA says yes, definitely, when it comes to teen girls.
Forever 21's maternity clothing line is currently available in stores in just five states, the same ones that just so happen to have the highest rates of teen pregnancy.
A staffer from the San Jose YMCA (now going by just "Y") says young girls seeing all this cute, chic attire will encourage them to get pregnant so they can wear the clothes. The Y says launching the line in the highest rate states could not be unintentional, especially since the line is opening next week in Nevada, another state that ranks high.
Are today's teens really that stupid?
Some say yes. Even some teen girls interviewed by the local ABC affiliate said they believe the clothes will inspire some of their friends to have sex and deliver a child. The clothing company insists there's no underhanded marketing strategy involved. In an official statement, they said:
"Forever 21 did not create, design or distribute Love 21 Maternity to target or appeal specifically to pregnant teens. Any relationship between teen pregnancy rates and the locations of our stores is unintentional."
If the Y is right, we've got a lot more to worry about. Some of the Liz Lange maternity clothes at Target are a lot cuter than the Forever 21 line. We're talking baggy t-shirts and leggings in basic styles and different shades of black and white, mostly. The purple tunic above is about as exciting as it gets, and sorry, but that would not be enough to get me to have unprotected sex with the quarterback. Isabella Oliver? Definitely a maybe.
This is just silly. In my town, Target's maternity section is located directly across the aisle from girls' shoes. Perhaps someone needs to put a note in the suggestion box there? I also like the trendy bump styles at Top Shop, another popular teen haunt. Should we place a call there? Then there's Old Navy ...
Today's teens aren't that bright, but they are not that dumb, either.
Comments (17)
Ummm... I don't think cute maternity clothes are going to make someone MORE likely to get pregnant. There is a market in these states for Forever21 maternity clothes BECAUSE of the high teen pregnancy rate. If there is a market for something, the stores are going to move in on it. That's just business. The teen pregnancy rate didn't go up because they started selling these clothes.
Maybe the Y's time would be better spent actually identifying the cause of the high rates of teen pregnancy in these states and working towards lowering it.
The Y is stuipd, just because this store or any store is selling materntiy clothes it's not going to make them pregnant. When I was pregnant there wasn't many stores that carried maternity clothes and I just think they are trying to give pregnant women more of option on where to buy there clothes.
Good grief the Y needs to focus their attention elsewhere, perhaps to the troubled teens already present in the neighborhoods, instead of on trivialities such as this.
I am pretty certain that the teen pregnancy rate was already higher in those states anyway...so if they are already getting pregnant, why not offer some cute clothes in trendy stores? I don't think the point is to encourage teens to get pregnant, just to supply the demand that is already there.
That's pretty stupid. Ignorance about birth control + sex gets them pregnant, not seeing maternity clothing.
I love the idea of Forever 21 having Maternity clothes, teenagers are not the only ones who shop at forever 21. I am a 33 yr old wife and mother of 3, and I shop at Forever 21!
I don't think that just having these clothes in Forever 21 will make girls want to get pregnant but I have to admit I paused today when I saw a very young teen (maybe tween) browsing through the section until she saw the big billboard for the maternity line.
I agree cutemama...I liked looking in style while preggers and no clothing could make me want to get pregnant. The "Y" def has more things to worry about.
I CAN'T BELIEVE THERE'S SOOO STUPID ADULT PEOPLE THAT THINKS LIKE THIS! FIRST OF ALL THAT STORE IS NOT ONLY FOR TEENS, MY DAUGHTER IS 27 AND SHE SHOPS THERE BECAUSE SHE IS PETITE AND SHE LIKES THE CLOTHES SO A LOT OF HER FRIENDS OVER 30, I WISH THEY HAVE HAD MATERNITY CLOTHES THERE WHEN SHE WAS PREGNANT LAST YEAR ! BECAUSE THE ONES IN THE MATERNITY STORES ARE NOT REALLY NICE.. ON THE OTHER HAND TEENAGERS ARE MOSTLY THINKING ABOUT BEEING THIN AND SOMETIMES THEY GET ANOREXIC, THE ONES THAT THINK ABOUT GETTING PREGNANT TO WEAR THOSE CLOTHES, WELL, THEY NEED Psychiatric help !!