On Degrassi & Teen Pregnancy
“I believe the independence of women is an agenda that should continue to be prominent in our current society and the ones that will form later on in mankind until women are granted autonomous freedom and support for young expecting mothers is shared by everyone.”
I remember watching Degrassi: The Next Generation for the first time. The first episode instantly caught my attention and had me hooked for the next 12 seasons. Even though the show came out before I was born, I was always exposed to older shows due to my siblings and cousins. I instantly fell in love with the characters and just the way that every episode discusses a new topic, leaving room for anticipation of the next episode.
Two episodes in particular stuck out to me. Those two episodes were “Accidents Will Happen,” parts one and two of season 3 of the series. The way the debate of abortion, adoption, and teen pregnancy was televised surprised me and made me excited because I’ve never seen any of those topics discussed on TV let alone a show marketed for teenagers. When I first saw the episodes they didn’t have much connection to me on a personal level but now I can see myself within that story.
On January 26th, 2004, Degrassi: The Next Generation aired the highly controversial episode called “Accidents Will Happen,'' a two-part episode focusing on teen pregnancy. In part 1, one of the main characters, Manny Santos, discovers she’s pregnant and is conflicted about how she’s going to deal with the situation, and she ultimately tells her boyfriend Craig, and he’s excited to be having a baby. In the second episode, Manny realizes she’s not ready for motherhood and fears that if she decides to keep the baby, her parents will send her back to the Philippines as they did to her cousin, but she doesn’t want to disappoint Craig. She settles on having an abortion but her pro-life best friend Emma tries to fight her on that decision so she confides in her mother and they both go to the clinic together for the procedure.
The abortion debate was heavily apparent in those episodes, and Emma quickly becomes furious with Manny making her feel like she doesn’t know what’s best for her life. In every other interaction they have throughout the episode, Emma is pressuring her into going full term with her pregnancy and giving up the baby for adoption. She then soon understands Manny’s concerns and while she doesn’t approve of the decision to abort, she understands that it's Manny's body and her choice of what she wants to do with it.
Due to the complaints from parents and pro-life supporters in the television and film industry, The N channel that was airing Degrassi: The Next Generation at the the time in the US decided the episodes weren’t fit for TV and were pulled from the air. “Fans were outraged, and a 6,000-signature petition was sent to The N Channel to persuade executives to air the episodes after all.” Chadim, B. (2023, December 8). The episode was even banned in the USA, according to the website Collider.
The abortion debate had already been prominent in the media for decades especially since it wasn’t the show’s first time discussing teen pregnancy. Back in 1989, in the previous series Degrassi High, which aired on PBS, a character named Erica Farrel discovers she’s pregnant and decides between abortion or giving the child up for adoption. Her twin sister Heather was highly against abortion but in the end, she decides to support her sister and they go down to the clinic for the procedure. In the unedited version of the episode when the teens arrive at the clinic there are people outside protesting against abortion and holding up plastic fetuses. The Degrassi franchise has been leading the way on the topic of teen sex for decades.
I don’t believe teen pregnancy and abortion should be normalized but they should be accepted, and young girls shouldn’t feel uncomfortable or embarrassed by the decisions they’ve made. In reality, teen sex isn't going anywhere, and therefore, teen pregnancy isn't either. Though many people are divided on how to handle teen pregnancy, discussing the options with sensitivity and courage should be praised, not hidden away.
When I first watched the episodes, I was amazed by the fact that the show itself was exploring the options women have with their bodies, rather than labeling Manny as an unfit teen mother. I would love to see that type of representation in the media more often. It was great to see how Manny’s decision of abortion relates to my decision when I recently went through my own teen pregnancy experience. The depiction of her fear of being sent back to her family’s home country if she had decided to keep the baby felt like a page out of my life story. The actor who played Manny, Cassie Steele, did a great job at convincing us that this was the character’s reality but this is the reality for many young girls. The same pressure she felt from other characters to make a decision is the same way I felt when it was time to make mine.
When I first found out I was pregnant, just like Manny I was fearful to tell anyone because I was worried about what my family would do to me. I also felt pressured by people around me to decide to have an abortion, and found it ironic that they would prefer that over me keeping the child. Everyone felt like they knew what would be best for me and, given the circumstances, they were right, it wasn’t the time for me to even consider having children. Due to the depiction of abortion around me, I never wanted to go through it myself, but I made sure not to force my opinions on other people.
The media depicts teen pregnancy as such a taboo thing and young women are constantly frowned upon. I believe that's is why shows where that specific topic is highlighted, like “Teen Mom OG” or “16 and Pregnant” and “Degrassi: The Next Generation,” play an important role in the media and promote societal change. Shelley Scarrow, a Toronto-based writer and story editor who wrote “Accidents Will Happen” and several other controversial episodes, believes what she has done is important. “Every season we would make a list of issues we wanted to tackle,” said Scarrow. “To me, abortion’s one that has to be there. It deserves dramatic representation. It’s something that we run into, and yet it’s like the third rail — you just don’t touch it.” I couldn’t agree with Scarrow’s point of view more, as abortion deserves accurate representation in the media, not only to expose people to it but to normalize the decision.
To say the media hasn’t changed or matured since the broadcast of women’s autonomy rights would be a false claim but to say major changes have been made would also be false. Women’s reproductive rights are still being taken away from them by white men who hold high power in today’s government. It's a shame to see that as of September 1st, 2023, 24 out of 50 states have nearly banned abortions limiting a woman's free will to decide her reproductive health. TV shows such as “Scandal”, “Jane the Virgin”, “Grey’s Anatomy", " Bojack Horseman”, and two of Degrassi’s spin-off shows have attempted to shed light on the hidden topic and give the pro-abortion side of the debate representation. The impact of the hit TV series “Teen Mom OG" and similar show “16 and Pregnant” has also given pregnant teenage girls somewhat of a safe space and represented the real-life struggles of being a mom or expecting mother. The lack of support for young women going through these experiences has led to them feeling disgusted and ashamed of themselves when in those predicaments. Many social movements and civil society groups work hard to protest for women’s autonomous rights and continue to fight back against the sexist government that continues to remain in power. The exercise of their natural rights of “freedom of speech” and “freedom of assembly” has deeply paid off, which is why we’re allowed to see both sides of the debate through social media and television. I believe the independence of women is an agenda that should continue to be prominent in our current society and the ones that will form later on in mankind until women are granted autonomous freedom and support for young expecting mothers is shared by everyone.