Here's an idea that many people have not considered lately. Maybe we should teach young people to keep their friggin' pants on and that sex isn't all it's cracked up to be. It may sound puritanical and simplistic, but the safest sex is indeed no sex. Let's not debate the validity of the statistics, but let's try to encourage godliness, education, love and marriage among young African Americans. The "Will You Marry Me" contest is an excellent start.

To: Female, Black and Proud , February 21, You find this to be a negative article, I differ. This points to responsibility, the stuff that Bill Cosby was talking about. A.A. are committing these ungodly acts because of the break down of the family. This is a bi-product of the Great Society, counter intuitive domestic programs. As the saying goes, the road to h_l_ is paved with good intentions. Putting one head in the sand about this Eugenics program masquerading as Plan Parenthood is not the solutions; we need to stop killing ourselves - in and out of the womb. There is a lot of anger, but misdirected and it is selfless IMO to put on rose color glasses and want the truth of this article to go away. God acknowledges the life in the womb before it is born. To say it is just my body is a lie and denial of the highest order. When that choice is made, a little heart stops beating; plan truth. Pray against abortions of any color and powers and programs that want to keep this inhumane practice flowing; Christ sacrificed himself for all. I place my trust in Jesus Christ, cause as the saying goes, you place it in man he will let you down every time. Not much mention of God in these blogs, for me there is nothing more uplifting to ones soul than to come before Him, In Spirit and in Truth.

P.S. Lookiing for a lift, I find Shani Davis success in the Winter Olympics to be real good role model stuff.

dear sir i am a 59 year BLACK old steelworker IAM WATCHING CNN 5:45AM I BELIEVE RACISM HAS A LOT TO DO WITH BLACK CHILDREN BEING ENDANGERED BRT I BELIEVE THE WELFARE PIMPS HAVE MORE TO DO WITH IT ABORTION IS WRONG. HOW CAN WE JUSTIFY KILLING OUR YOUNG.

To angry black woman, maybe you need to meet a Black man who would show you what love and admiration is all about. In regards to the statistics and billboard, instead of censuring it, we, as blacks need to see how we could be better. For every beautiful women who go for abortion, I believe they had sleepless nights and uncontrolled sobs before resulting to it. Pro-abortion supporters need to know the grave feelings those women go through. I wished the statistics establish the ratio of educated and uneducated women performing such grave act. Education and poverty are the major factors why women go through abortion. I hope the new generation of black children would: grow up living in homes with both parents, know that education is the only way to a better life, and fall in love with beautiful partner without racial restriction. PS> angry black woman, I need to change your perspectives when it comes to black men. hit me on facebook

I thought the whole point of Essence was to uplift and celebrate Black women...is it just me or is every other article on this web site seemingly putting us down? I mean we went from "Is it safe to date Black women?" to "Black Children are an Endangered Species." I look to this magazine for interesting articles, but lately, it's been so negative. As for this article, BLACK PEOPLE AREN'T GOING ANYWHERE, no matter what those billboards say. Plus, it fails to look into other mitigating factors that could influence the decision to get an abortion, such as rape or incest. This article just represents how the quality of Essence has deteriorated...they're no better than the rest of the media world.

I just wanted to say that I find the whole ad to be repulsive. I feel that too many black women are struggling to raise their children with little or no help from the father. The choice to abort is that--a choice that a woman-- sister had to make regarding her life. This choice should rest in the hands of women- not men--especially those that really have a misogynist, non chalant attitude about their woman and children respectively. I am a black woman with 1 child and I have witnessed the apathy that many black men have towards their own seed firsthand. I do feel that the ad is intended to further attack black women.(Is it a coincidence that the ad pops up right after black women are attacked for not being married and being successfully single? The creative force behind the ad is Ryan Bomberger, who is a product of rape( white mother raped by black man. His mother gave him up for adoption.) He is married to a white woman and I guess he feels that since his mother did not abort him, why should anyone--I don't know--I am just making an educated guess. I have learned over the years that sometime what you see is not the 'real deal'--sometimes it is necessary to look behind the billboard and see what the 'real deal' is. I don't want anyone telling me what to do with my womb--my body. I also do not want anyone telling my daughter that she has no choice or control over her body. I do not want to see the clocked turned back 70 years ago to a time when the only value women had was the value of their womb. Do you?

This Essence.com article irresponsibly misreports a central statistic provided on TooManyAborted.com. Apparently no one has claimed authorship of this news item nor bothered to actually visit the campaign's site. TooManyAborted.com states that 56% of all abortions in GA (according to GA Health Division) are on African-Americans, even though only 30% of the population of Georgia is black....NOT that 56% of African-American women have abortions. Huge difference. The campaign exposes the abortion industry's past and present, with irrefutable historical and present (state/federal) facts to illuminate why abortion disproportionately affects the Black community. Truth matters and groups like Sistersong can only resort to demonization and unsubstantiated attacks. We believe in the beauty and power of women, born and unborn. We're just trying to get people to peel back the layers of the lies surrounding 'reproductive freedom'. Visit the site. Know the truth.

CHELSEA TROLL HARDER.

That statistic is not only wrong, but an insult to Black-American women residing in Georgia. It is ludicrous to believe 56% of ALL Black-American women living in Georgia are getting abortions. It is more likely that 56% of ALL abortion cases in Georgia are from Black-American women. This is a huge difference. Still, I wouldn't even trust that statistic.

WOW THERE ARE SERIOUSLY SOME ANGRY BLACK FOLKS ON THIS SITE TODAY!!!! I DON'T GET INTO STATISTICS BECAUSE THEY CAN BE SKEWED TO PRESENT WHATEVER PICTURE THOSE WHO THIS INFO MATTERS TO WANT TO PRESENT, SO I USUALLY DON'T PUT MUCH STOCK INTO THEM AND WILL NOT PUT MUCH STOCK INTO THESE...THE MAJORITY OF US AFRICAN AMERICANS CAN CLAIM MIXED RACE HERITAGE BECAUSE OF THE EXTENSIVE RACE MIXING THAT HAS GONE ON FOR YEARS. ITS NOTHING NEW!! BUT TO DEGRADE A PERSON BECAUSE OF THEIR MIXED RACE OR SAY THOSE CHILDREN DON'T DESERVE TO SAY THEY ARE AFRICAN AMERICANS IS CRUEL AND IGNORANT. I AM NOT BIRACIAL BUT I FEEL TO SINGLE THEM OUT IS DUMB.

Thank you Renee, this was getting quite irritating. Can you all stop making vast generalizations about entire races and ethnicities?
Bernardo, some Hispanic cultures have historically encouraged interracial marriage, some have historically discouraged it, and it often varies within families, regions, or countries.
Anonymous, having two black parents will not necessarily make you dark skinned. Here in America black people come in a wide range of shades. If you would like to go on a quest for the "pure black" African American, be my guest and send me a postcard when you find them.
Barbara, black women are graduating from college at unprecedented levels, while black men are significantly less likely to even graduate from high school. That is true, however, contemporary research suggests that young teenage black women don't see having children as a lack of alternatives but rather as a stabilizing, and fulfilling, force in their lives.
Mike, those numbers make sense and point to a startling trend (which I understand was the point of the article). Maybe you should have been writing the piece, as you seem to be able to articulate that better than the author. I suppose I was confused as to how one of the more popular, and widely subscribed to, magazine for African American women could publish such a sub-par article.

Wow, it seems there is no place for real intelligent engagement on Essence.com. This is a serious issue, painting black women as monsters, as Loretta Song said in the article. And yet the commentors find it necessary to mostly talk about bi-racial children. Are you serious? Our mothering skills are being questioned by this anti-abortion group and you're busy being worried about black men pushing babies in strollers. Can we raise the intelligence level up please people. We can do better than @angryblackwoman

Wait so black children are an endangered species now? I thought African American women have the highest rate of teenage pregnancy and out of wedlock pregnancy. Or do those statistics not have anything to do with this issue? I really don’t know what the problem is? When African American women have too many kids the media jumps all over it and when they decide to LEGALLY ABORT the child it is a problem also.

No, you are wrong! Hispanics and Asians, Chinese, date outside of their race more than any other group in the United States and elsewhere. In fact, Hispanics encourage their children to marry white people it is a doctrine drilled into their children from an early age called,
MEJORAR LA RAZA! It means to improve the race by marrying white. Blacks are last to marry outside the race in comparison to Hispanics and Asians but the Hispanics are worst.

@ Trina

You do realize that white people have twice or more the population size than blacks. There are more whites, asians, indians, latinos, etc. than there are black people. By the numbers black men date outside the race more than any other race or gender. This is worldwide not just in the US. We are dying at an alarming rate with also with incarceration, black on black crime, HIV, poor health, poverty and the list goes on.