Teen pregnancies are something which our society continues to stigmatise for all the wrong reasons, and teenage mothers are often dismissed and looked down upon by their peers, by adults, and even by their own parents. Even programmes like MTV's Teen Mom seems to delight in gawking at young mothers like they're some sort of sideshow attraction, and not just young people who, for a variety of different reasons, have gotten pregnant during their adolescence.
I can even remember the subject being a controversial one during my own teenage years, when girls who were "knocked up" in high school were seen to have made a terrible mistake. Yes, for all the supposed strides we've made when it comes to women's rights, these particular young women often seem to be shamed and shunned. However, now a teen mom is striking back against her haters in the best possible way: namely by bringing her two-year-old daughter to prom with her.
Kayleigh Snaith, who hails from County Durham in England, found out that she was pregnant at the incredibly young age of 13-years-old. She experienced shaming and dismissal from friends and adults. She even attempted to hide her pregnancy for the first six months of gestation. However, when her daughter Harley was born in 2016, she doted upon her, and put all her energies into raising her child right. She then decided to bring her little girl to prom with her, just to show her haters how defiant she was.
In a recent interview Snaith stated: "I wanted to take Harley to my prom and get her all dressed up to show her that she is a princess in my eyes – and always will be. I hope she grows up knowing that she deserves the best and never to settle for anything or anyone that makes her unhappy.
"She should be treated with love and care. I also wanted to show everyone else who thought I would never make it through school being a young mum that I did it. Here I am celebrating finishing school with my daughter. I wanted everyone to see that Harley comes first. Nothing is just about me anymore, it’s about me and Harley. I wanted her to feel as beautiful and loved as I did on my prom day."
"I remember sitting and crying because I was worried I would fail and I wouldn’t be able to get a job and do the best I could for Harley. It was a lot of pressure. But Harley inspired me to keep going and gave me the big push I needed. I've worked really hard and I’m looking forward to getting my results in August. I hope by sharing the pictures from my prom, other young mums and their parents will realise that having a baby in your teens isn’t the end of the world."
"No matter what people tell you or think of you, if you push yourself and work hard you can still achieve all of your life goals. Yes, it is a struggle and it’s life changing but being a new mum always is. There are mums in their twenties and thirties who find it scary. Your age doesn’t define whether or not you’re a good mum."
Personally, I think Harley is a great mom, and she should be proud of herself. I think they're rocking their prom.
