Bristol Palin to Teen Girls: 'Think Before You Play'
Bristol Palin is warning girls in a new teen pregnancy ad to think about the consequences of sexual activities before engaging in them.
In a public service announcement for The Candie's Foundation, the 19-year-old mother asks a series of questions including "What if I didn't come from a famous family?" "What if I didn't have all their support?" "What if I didn't have all these opportunities?"
In zooming out, the camera shot reveals a nearly unfurnished room, Palin in a t-shirt and jeans, and her son Tripp with only a diaper and white shirt on.
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"Believe me, it wouldn't be pretty," says Palin.
"Pause, before you play," she warns.
Palin, the daughter of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, was in the media spotlight and the subject of much discussion during the 2008 presidential campaign after it was made known that she was an unwed, pregnant teen.
In an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America" last May, Palin said abstinence is the best and only way to prevent pregnancy. And while not easy, Palin said she believes abstinence is realistic.
"I do think it's realistic," she said. "It's definitely the harder choice but it's the safest choice and it's the best choice."
The high-profile teen mom reiterated her stance on abstinence recently with The Associated Press. In the interview, Palin said if girls knew how hard it is to be a mom, they would think twice before having sex. As for herself, Palin said she has decided to practice abstinence until marriage after her experience being a teen mother.
"I don't think anyone realizes how difficult it really is until you actually have a screaming baby in your arms and you're up all night," Palin told AP. "It changes literally every aspect of your life, and if girls realized how hard it was to be a teen mom, they would think twice about having sex without the proper education and proper knowledge."
Most recently, a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed that the teen birth rate in the United States fell two percent between 2007 and 2008, reversing a two-year increase that interrupted the 34 percent decline in teenage childbearing from 1991 to 2005.
The CDC's National Center for Health Statistics found there were 41.5 births per 1,000 teenagers aged 15-19 years in 2008. In the previous year, the rate was 42.5.
The new report, released this past Tuesday, also revealed how more than 6 in 7 births to teenagers were nonmarital in 2008.
In total, teenagers accounted for 22 percent of all nonmarital births in 2008.
