The Untold Story of 20-to-30 Somethings' Unwed Births: Forget about the high drama and heartache on shows like Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant. The true reality show on the hardships of out-of-wedlock childbearing stars women in their 20s and 30s and marriage and child stability are quickly being written out of the script.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control recently released the unwed birth rate numbers for 2009 and the news is not good. For the second consecutive year, over 40 percent of all births in the U.S. during 2009 were to unmarried women. The vast majority of these children were not born to teen moms, however, but to women well beyond the stage of prom dresses and SATs. In fact, the greatest increase in the number of unwed births from 2008 to 2009 occurred to women between 30 and 34 years old.
This increase in out-of-wedlock births signals serious trouble for future generations. Children raised in single-parent homes are six times more likely to experience poverty than children raised in stable, married households. The rise in comparatively unstable cohabitation and the increasingly common fatherless home are endangering the traditional family and subjecting children to unnecessary socioeconomic challenges. But the economic and social benefits of marriage continue to dissipate among low-income communities. Even the marital aspirations of middle-class Americans have weakened in recent years.
Fortunately, there are ways to increase the accessibility of marriage, decrease the unwed birth rate, and protect mothers and children from the negative effects of single parenthood. By ending marriage penalties inherent in means-tested welfare programs and launching campaigns to promote marriage in low-income communities, policy makers can encourage stable relationships and ensure better outcomes for children in low-income households.

Article published and distributed by The Heritage Foundation: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it