By Dave Andrusko

Brittany DeJesus
I won’t pretend to know anymore than I do know (which is almost nothing) about “Teen Moms” which has now been on MTV long enough to become “Teen Mom 3.” The reality show follows teen mothers—their ups and downs—and, I gather, the show has a devoted fan base.
Tonight at 10:00 EST the ninth episode airs and we’ve learned in advance that the sister of the program’s star–Briana DeJesus—“opens up” about her abortion. All I can comment on is what I just saw at the “sneak peek.”
The scene begins with Brittany DeJesus’ expressed reluctance to go to the doctor/ gynecologist. Her mom asks why—“It’s stupid.” Asked again Brittany testily responds that the last time she was there, “I got my #*%& abortion.”
She continues, “It’s a “bad memory, it’s like a #*%& trip down memory lane. I don’t want to go and relive that day,” Brittany explains. “That’s why I don’t want no one touching me. I’m not ready for that.”
And then perhaps her most revealing comment in the brief (1 minute, 5 second clip), Brittany says, “A year sounds like a lot but it’s really not for something like that. …That’s why I don’t want to go to the doctor.”
When she talks about not wanting to burden them with her problems, her sister and her mother say she is not; they know this is “really bothering you.” Briana, who has a two-year-old daughter, says, “We all know you’re hiding it, Brittany.” She advises, “You have to let it go.”
Then Briana adds, “Remember the reasons why you did it, okay? That’s what keeps you going.”
Her mother, who is crying, then says, “Let’s not forget, you didn’t just wake up and say I don’t want to [I think she says “go through with this,” meaning the pregnancy]. There were many reasons why you wanted to go through with the abortion. Okay?”
The final words are Briana’s: “You’ll be fine, I promise.”
They are trying to convince Brittany (and I’m guessing themselves) that she had good reasons (or at least adequate reasons) to abort—and by implication they remain good reason. And that if she no longer continues to keep her feelings “bottled up,” she will be able to get on with her life.
But it’s not that simple. Brittany’s face tells you that. Her reluctance to get anywhere near the individual who aborted her tells you that as does her vivid sense that the abortion is a bad “trip down memory lane.”