Elisabeth Perham
Racism and sexism are forms of discrimination that we hear about all the time, splashed across the media, littering our history books with sad stories of people whose lives have been ruined because society has failed to get over the colour of their skin or the level of different hormones their bodies are coded to produce. There is, however, another form of discrimination that, while still being very damaging, we don’t hear much about.
Have you ever felt like you’re being watched in a shop because it’s assumed that you’re “just a thieving teenager”? Ever felt hard done by because an older co-worker is being paid more money than you, to do the same job? If you’ve answered yes to either of these questions, then you have experienced ageism. Ageism can be defined as stereotypes or prejudice against people because of their age. It can manifest itself in a variety of ways and can apply whether you are young or old.
International Youth Day is celebrated on August 12 in countries all over the world, as an opportunity to draw attention to youth issues worldwide. In Aotearoa New Zealand we mark a whole WEEK in May, to celebrate the accomplishments of young people and the amazing contributions they make to our society. At the same time it is sad to note that in the media the same group is presented as a bunch of drunken, drug-crazed miscreants, arsonists and shoplifters, a group which society must protect itself from rather than embrace. Headlines such as Second cell break at Rimutaka youth unit’, “Concern about Youth Drinking Culture’ and Youth crime on the rise’ are common, and if this is the kind of journalism our parents and grandparents consume every day, then it is little wonder that a negative stereotype of youth has been established. Where are the stories about the vast majority of young people?! Those who go to school every day and work hard, take up part time jobs and participate in their communities.
Adolescence is a tough times in anyone’s life, whoever you are, wherever you live. Growing up is never easy and it has been made even more complex by the plethora of paths available for us. Drugs have never been so readily available, nor alcohol; violence has never been more mainstream, nor sex. Just as adults are exposed to bad press about the youth of today, so we are is exposed to this press about ourselves. Everyone is having sex so you should too. Drinking is cool’, right? Ditto smoking. And who cares if drugs are illegal. Remember the news? That’s just what teenagers do. And we are exposed to these ideas younger and younger. You may remember recent uproar over the use of dirty slogans on children’s underwear. Young children, especially boys, can be seen playing violent war games and hoon’-ie car games on gaming consoles. One might think we, today’s youth, are doomed to a life of unprotected sex, drugs and uncontrolled parties.
But consider this: never before have so many young people stayed in school, never have so many graduated from university. Never before have there been so many young people with part time jobs, working hard despite low wages. There is much to celebrate about our peers. You only need to look at the wonderful work of young people in JET magazine, to marvel at the awesome leadership of your head boys and girls, to appreciate the great contribution students participating in the Peer Support programme make to their schools, in order to see that young people have great value and that we are so much more than a bunch of P-crazed, STI-carrying thugs. The young people we read about in the papers are not all of us. And we know that. We just need society to realise that.
Being young doesn’t mean you’re useless. It doesn’t mean that a security guard should be following you any more closely in a store than any other shopper. It doesn’t mean old ladies should avoid you in the street. The best way to change negative stereotypes is to fight back, so it is our job to let society know how great we really are. Be proud to be young. Get involved in Youth Week this year and rubbish those bad impressions! In the words of a US teen-pride campaign: “Prove them wrong by doing something right.”
Five Facts:
- Nearly half the world’s people are under 25 years old. 87% live in the developing countries
- Tertiary participation of young people In Aotearoa New Zealand has increased by 50.3 percent since 1987
- Young people are ethnically more diverse than the rest of the Aotearoa New Zealand population
- Despite reports that say otherwise, data suggests that youth offending in Aotearoa New Zealand has in many areas decreased as a percentage of total offending over the last ten years
- A UK study undertaken in 2005 found that 81% of stories about young people were negative, yet only 8% actually quoted youth, suggesting a greatly skewed representation of youth by the media
LEARN MORE
- Check out the other articles on this website for some great articles about youth and prejudice
- Take a look around the youth media website for a European perspective.
- The McKnight Foundation website has a fantastic page of links about the demonising of youth in the media.
- Check out this great article about projecting the right messages in society in order to change a negative image.
TAKE ACTION!
- Visit the Youth Week website for info on how you can get involved in this year’s youth week, 21-27 May 2007. We are the youth, so the only people who can change stereotypes about us, are us!
- Learn to see beyond the negative press. Excel and shine despite the stereotyping, excel and shine because of the stereotyping! Show the world that you’re better than that!
- Keep an eye on the Ministry of Youth Development and Just Focus websites for opportunities to get involved with national and international youth events.
- Tell the world! If you do something awesome then let everyone know. Ring your local paper and get them to come and give you some coverage. They get a story, you get some media attention, the community can see what good young people are doing and your gran gets a clipping to paste in her scrapbook. Everyone’s a winner!
A version of this article was originally published in JET magazine.
Tags: events, Media, youth perspective