“Have a baby too young and it’ll control your life:" United Way launches new public awareness campaign

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, in collaboration with Serve Marketing, is launching a provocative new public awareness campaign designed to make teens think twice before becoming parents.

The powerful ads, which began appearing on 36 bus shelters in targeted areas this week, depict teen parents as a hand puppet, a jack-in-the-box and a pull toy, all being controlled by a disproportionately sized baby.  The ads read: “Have a baby too young and it’ll control your life.” The ads encourage viewers to visit www.babycanwait.com for information and resources.



"This campaign is really a stark reminder that when you have a baby as a teen, you give up control of your own life. "We hope that these ads embed that image in kids' heads, so that they think twice before having unprotected sex," Serve Volunteer Creative Director Gary Mueller said.

“Being a parent means putting your child’s needs first; your needs are secondary. “That responsibility is magnified if you are still a child yourself. That’s what we want teens to understand," Nicole Angresano, vice president of community impact for United Way said.

The ad campaign is the latest public awareness effort by the United Way-led Milwaukee Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative, a collaborative effort consisting of leaders from academic, health care, faith, government, nonprofit and other organizations working to reduce the teen birth rate in Milwaukee. Since 2006, the all-hands-on-deck approach has led to a 56% reduction in births to teens aged 15-17. The effort has become a national model for successful community collaboration and has received several national honors.

It is one of several community initiatives spearheaded by United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County to improve social conditions and create lasting social change in our communities.