What do you think of when you see the word ‘youth’? or the words ‘Young people’? what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Really, think about it, because what people think of youth is slowly changing.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, ‘Youth is a stage of life characterised by rapid psychological and physical transition, where young people progress from being dependent children to independent adults’ and it goes on to say: ‘Young people may be inclined to experiment and take risks that could impact on their own health and well being and have consequences for others’. The Australian Bureau of Statistics is a pretty important website, and with such a negative comment about youth in the very first paragraph, it leaves room to question what other generations and what our own generation thinks of us.
These days, it seems like us Generation Y and Generation Z kids have a bit of a reputation. I asked my friends on facebook what they thought of ‘youth’ and ‘young people’ and the responses I got do not paint a pretty picture. Words most commonly associated with youth were ‘bogan’, ‘disrespectful’, ‘disgrace’ and there was a mention of the stereotypical image of a swearing, smoking, baggy clothes wearing teenager. Now think back to the question I first asked you, is this what you thought of youth?
Although this description does fit some people in the community, the important word here is ‘some’. There are only a few individuals in society that create this reputation for young people. I’m thinking Corey Worthington here! And unfortunately, the media loves guys like Corey Worthington. A quick Google News search of youth came up with numerous news articles that mentioned young people stabbing each other and getting drunk. Is this what you think about young people?
Sadly, there wasn’t many articles on all the amazing work young people do! For example, the Oaktree Foundation and Vision Generation. The Oaktree Foundation and Vision Generation are youth organisations completely run by people aged 15-26, by people just like you and me! The Oaktree Foundation alone has donated 2.5 million dollars to education for poverty stricken children overseas, and has directly benefited over 120,000 people, but rarely on the news do I hear about an individual donating their time to charity over an individual injuring another human being.
Also sidelined is the likes of local youth councils, grassroots youth movements and the actions of amazing young leaders. When have you ever heard on the news about a youth council making changes in their community, or a youth movement affecting politicians? Why it is that youth binge drinking is more of a regular topic on the news over young leaders? Why is it that all the negative behaviour that some youth display is being broadcast over the amazing work that goes on every day by many young people.
I am lucky enough to have met a woman that was a part of creating the 2006 Make Poverty History Concert. The concert was huge, with Kevin Rudd (who was at the time running for Prime Minister) getting up on stage and announcing his commitment to ending extreme poverty. The woman who helped organise this concert was 16 at the time. She was not by luck, some amazing young lady that knew famous people, or did not have extraordinary organisational skills. She was, and still is, simply a passionate and motivated person that was brave enough to give even the seemingly impossible a go.
I believe that young people can truly change the world. Look at Mark Zuckerberg. He created Facebook when he was 22 years old. Or closer to home, founder of Braaap Brad Smith started pursuing his dream when he was 16 years old, and now as a 21 year old, he owns a business that he created himself. Young people are not all ‘bogans’ and disrespectful to others, but instead a lot of youth are creating positive change revolutionising the way older generations perceive Generation Y and Z kids.
What are your thoughts?
Read more by Teagan
What are your thoughts?
Read more by Teagan
