In New York City, 41% of Pregnancies Aborted

A whopping 41% of pregnancies in New York City ended in abortion in 2009, and that rate was even higher among some minorities, according to new data released by the health department. Non-Hispanic blacks, for example, had a 59.8% abortion rate, while Hispanics had a rate of 41.3%. Asians and non-Hispanic whites, meanwhile, had lower rates of 22.7% and 20.4%, respectively.

The crazy part? Those numbers are actually an improvement. Twelve years ago, the city that never sleeps aborted 46% of its pregnancies, according to ABC. Still, no one’s really celebrating. “It is downright chilling,” the archbishop of New York told reporters, reiterating the Catholic Church's pro-abstinence stance. "There’s candy bowls on people's desks with condoms, they're dropping them from airplanes, yet nothing seems to improve, so they've been on the wrong track here." Planned Parenthood also bemoaned the figures, but said it only underscored the need for more comprehensive sex education. (More New York City stories.)