Learning to ‘Think Twice’

The new manual created by the Latino Initiative, which drew on the expertise of 20 Latino community leaders, hopes to spread such insights. It emphasizes that Latino teens straddle two worlds and that they need to learn to navigate between them. To do so, the manual stresses the importance of using traditional Hispanic values—familismo (family-centeredness), simpatía (affection), respeto (respect)—as a compass. As the manual points out, "Latino adolescents who report feeling close to their parents are less likely to initiate sex at an early age and are likely to enact safer sexual practices." For that reason, most of the recommendations center on parent-teen communication, seeking to harness the ingrained Hispanic notion of respect for one's elders. "Literature shows that this concept is unique to the Latino community," says Alvaro Simmons, COO of Mary's Center for Maternal and Child Care, a health-care center and NCLR affiliate in Washington, D.C. "It is one [teen-pregnancy] intervention that works when tested against other communities. "

One person trying to foster change in the community is Zeleya, the teenage mother, who is now 16. She's working as a peer educator at Mary's Center, where she encourages girls her age and younger to "think twice" about sex and to pursue their dreams. "When I had my child, my plans all went down the drain," she says. She still has her dreams—going to college, becoming a physical therapist—but it may take her quite a bit longer to realize them.

© 2007