Passerbys to a shop window in the bustling capital of Caracas, Venezuela have been shocked by the sight of  pregnant teen mannequins dressed in the uniforms of most school children in that country. 

Two local children’s charities installed the mannequins to bring attention to the country’s 23% teenage pregnancy rate, the highest of all South American countries.

The organizers from Fundana and Construyendo Futuros charities said they felt they needed to pull off the stunt to force people to discuss what is taboo there.

Absence of sex education, they say, is the root cause of the high teen pregnancy rate.

“This is such a taboo subject in Venezuela, we want people to talk about it,” Construyendo Futuros president Thalma Cohen said. “Some people get angry and complain. Others congratulate us.”

Good, bad or indifferent, the experiment is certainly raising dialogue and accomplishing what it set out to do. That’s a critical first step.