January 2021
It’s a new year but the same old story. Leaders of nations often phrase: “The youth are the future.”
The youth are used as beacons of hope for a brighter and better future.
But when the youth rise in the present to fight for that future, they are brushed off and treated as “children.” How are these “children” more worried about the future than the “adults”? Youth worldwide are rising to fight for social justice issues like gender inequality, racial inequality, climate justice, and gun violence. Yet, they are told they “do not know better” and must “stay in school to learn.”
The youth are balls of fire. Unfortunately, that energy often leads to the misunderstanding that they are all wild and reckless. Yet they use that energy to fact-check and hold governments, organizations, and individuals accountable. Meanwhile, “adults” remain in their fancy offices complaining about wallpaper stains and tweeting foolish things.
The future of the youth rests on the shoulders of those in power at present. It is a truly terrifying thought. It is time to force those so-called adults to look in the mirror and let them see what they have become; prideful and immovable beings. Their wild or reckless ways will not do. The youth will not stay silent while the so-called adults do their best to ruin their future.
Yes, the youth are the future, but so are they the present.
9th January, 2021
