Marriage and Teen Pregnancy.

It is worth noting that teen pregnancies are at record lows, while unwed motherhood is at a record high.

In this case, the good news outweighs the bad news. A woman having children, often while living with her boyfriend, in her late twenties, is far less of a crisis than a teenaged parent, even if that teen is in a shaky marriage (although most teen parents are not married).

While unwed motherhood is often far from ideal, recognizing the new face of American unwed motherhood is important if we are going to devise policies that better serve the public. For instance, domestic partner benefits might, in practice, turn out to be far more important for unwed mothers than they are for gay and lesbian couples.