“LOL, sent to Paris to discuss global problems but never solve any of them. This kid will end up like the rest of the faceless governmental bureaucracy that has driven America into the brink of bankruptcy and failure.”
That was a comment underneath the short article on my hometown’s website, Jacksonville.com, about my selection to be one of two American representatives at the upcoming UNESCO Youth Forum. Anyone who has ever spent time reading comments underneath YouTube videos (a favorite pastime of mine, especially when I have an essay due the next morning) understands that what people say online sometimes shouldn’t be taken too seriously. Still, there’s more to this particular comment. Right after I reported this user for “abuse” on the online forum (I couldn’t help it…), I started thinking more and more about his/her comment. Right now, as I sit on a plane with six and a half hours to go until Paris, I want to explore it more concretely.
Is it so unreasonable? In a word: no. Americans are disillusioned with a political landscape that appears to be both too tangled and totally divided at the same time. We watch the news and we see a lot of talk. We see townhall meetings, Congressional hearings, international conferences… but we don’t see as much action as we’d like. This is a very valid reason for frustration, and perhaps that’s what drove our online friend towards his/her comment.
While I understand how this frustration could lead to the assumption that nothing is going to get done at the upcoming Forum, I could not disagree more with the perspective and attitude behind it. Youth worldwide are very rarely given real opportunities to influence and direct policymaking. Greater efforts have been made recently both in the US and around the world, especially in lieu of the United Nation’s “International Year of Youth,” to engage youth in policymaking. But our generation’s potential is still quite limited. How can we blame youth for a dissatisfaction with our government’s poor decisions and failures when we as a generation have had very little to do with them? Really, our Internet pal should be sympathizing with us; if our government is as inefficient as he/she believes it to be, WE as youth are the ones who will be shouldering the burden of the consequences.
The better argument, however, is to show our virtual comrade (I’m clearly running out of synonyms for “online friend…”) and the rest of the world the amazing things being done by youth across the world to help their communities. American youth today – the “Millennial Generation” – have shown a much greater involvement in civic engagement and community service than any other previous generation in American history. When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, it is well documented that the government was remarkably slow in responding. Meanwhile, however, it was the youth of our nation who dropped their to-do lists and traveled to New Orleans in droves to help rebuild the city’s structure and spirit.
Youth all over the world are standing up, too. To give more personal examples, I have a Brazilian friend named Mattheus who recently moved to Haiti to start a music school for children there. His message is rebuilding the spirit, creative energy, and education of Haitian children through music. I have another friend named Mahmud who co-hosts a talk show to raise awareness about AIDS prevention and is working to re-establish Liberia after the civil war. I met both of these inspiring young guys at a youth conference I attended last year. If nothing else, I am positive that this Forum will provide me with more friends like these from all across the world - devoted young people who are locating problems in their communities and working with others to solve them. That cooperation, sharing of ideas, and bridging of gaps is nothing to be scoffed at.
Youth today are a generation that is more connected than ever before. We see past the divisions that our elders take for granted. We dare to dream in ways that those above us no longer choose to. We see things from a perspective that our seniors simply cannot. Whenever something arrives like the UNESCO Youth Forum, a rare opportunity for youth leaders from around the world to directly influence decision-making, the last thing to do is jeer. Maybe it’s time to stop blaming youth for the problems we see in our communities. Maybe its time to stop expecting the struggles of this generation’s leaders to be translated onto our fresh, new generation of leaders. Maybe it’s time to just stop... and listen.
