Gaby Rodriguez, fake pregnancy
Gaby Rodriguez would worry whenever anyone asked to touch her baby bump. It wasn’t because she felt shy or embarrassed. It was because the bulge — fashioned from wire mesh and cotton quilt batting — didn’t actually contain a baby. For the past 6 ½ months — the bulk of her senior year at Toppenish High School — the 17-year-old A-student faked her own pregnancy. Only a handful of people — her mother, boyfriend and principal among them — knew Gaby was pretending to be pregnant for her senior project, a culminating assignment required for graduation.
Section:Gallery
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In an April 20, 2011 photo, Toppenish High School senior Gaby Rodriguez reveals to the school her preganancy is a fake, having used padding to simulate the pregnancy. She made the announcement at a school assembly Wednesday, April 20, 2011 in Toppenish, Wash.. The faked pregnancy was part of her senior project to gauge sterotypes and reactions to teen pregnancy.
Gordon King Yakima Herald-Republic
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In an April 20, 2011 photo, A tearful Gaby Rodriguez, right, hugs her mother Juana Rodriguez following an assembly at Toppenish High School April 20, 2011 in Toppenish, Wash. in which Gaby revealed to the school she had faked a pregnancy to gauge sterotypes and reactions to her "pregnancy" for her senior project. Juana Rodriguez was one of the few people who did know about the faked pregnancy.
Gordon King Yakima Herald-Republic
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In an April 20, 2011 phoyo, Toppenish High School senior Gaby Rodriguez talks about rumors and stereotypes at a school assembly in Toppenish, Wash. during which she revealed that for the past 6� months � the bulk of her senior year at Toppenish High School � the 17-year-old A-student faked her own pregnancy in order to test the reactions of her friends and family, for a senior project.
Gordon King Yakima Herald-Republic