U.S. birth rate dips lowest in decades; decline in Americans’ morals and religion are a root cause

TUPELO, Miss. — A recent report from the CDC and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics reported 3.59 million births in 2023; a 2% decline from 2022 and the lowest number in decades. The report noted that the birth rate has consistently been below replacement — “the level at which a given generation can exactly replace itself” — since 2007.

American Family Association (AFA, www.AFA.net) President Tim Wildmon suggests that Americans’ search for personal fulfillment and lack of religious beliefs are a root cause behind the declining birth rate.

“The moral rot spreading throughout American society is devouring every institution it touches –– including the family,” says Wildmon. “When people turn their hearts away from God, their behavior is not only rebellious, it’s self-destructive. While the root causes of declining birth rates in the U.S. are admittedly complex, it is clear that many younger people often disdain marriage and are content to focus on personal fulfillment. Having children requires parents to sacrifice by investing in the future their time, energy, and money. Why do that when you are busy feathering your own personal nest, binge-watching Netflix, and hooking up? Yet, this obsession with what’s fleeting may very well consign our culture to oblivion.”

For over 40 years, AFA has operated within the mission to inform, equip, and activate individuals to strengthen the moral foundations of American culture and give aid to the church here and abroad in its task of fulfilling the Great Commission.  Founded in 1977, AFA has long been on the front lines of America’s culture war. Today,  AFA is one of the largest and most effective pro-family organizations in the country, with nearly a million online supporters and approximately 110,000 subscribers to The Stand (formerly known as the AFA Journal), the ministry’s monthly magazine.  Find AFA Action Alerts here. In addition, AFA owns and operates nearly 180 radio stations across the country under the American Family Radio banner. 

View the media page for AFA here. For more information on the American Family Association, visit www.afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or Twitter @AmericanFamAssc.        

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To interview an AFA spokesperson, contact Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105.