by Beth Anderle

Created on: February 20, 2009   Last Updated: June 16, 2009

Last summer we were all inundated with news reports about the "Gloucester High School Pregnancy Pact." The reality of the situation is that there was no situation. There was no "pact" unless you include a number of the pregnant girls who banded together to support one another and help each other stay in school. The sad truth is that there were a number of confused young women who thought having a baby would make life more tolerable. For some it was about having someone to love. For some it was about improving their economic condition. For some it was just an accident. In Gloucester, nothing is secret for long: if there had been a pact, we would all know about it by now.

Sadly, slow news days make for sensational stories; the national media picked up on an unfortunate off-hand remark from a reputable and well-respected educator who was trying to make sense of what was happening in his school. As the story spread the numbers grew higher. The "conspiracy" grew more wide-spread. Suddenly this small fishing city was at the forefront of a scandal where the facts were changed and manipulated on a daily basis to make the sad story even more sensational.

Gloucester has been a depressed community for a long time. Thirty years ago the fishing industry was already on the decline because of over-fishing. The shell-fish industry was slowly being wiped out by red tide and inadequate food supplies. This trend continues today. Because of this, a large number of people find themselves in bad economic conditions. Unemployment has been an issue, several generations have lived off welfare, countless teens and adults have turned to drugs, and AIDS and homelessness skyrocketed. All too frequently city officials tried to cover up the problems so that Gloucester could continue to be attractive to the tourists who flock to this seaside community during the summer and fall. The city created an industry around tourism and ignored a number of the other problems in the city such as the economy, the state of the schools, the lack of adequate affordable housing, and what the welfare mentality was doing to the impoverished in the city.

The reality is that there has always been a teen pregnancy problem in Gloucester. When kids see no hope for the future they tend to take their fun where they can get it. Sex is readily available and free. Young women sometimes think that having a baby to love and to love them in return will make their lives better. Movies such as "Juno" and television

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