Technology is a big part of our lives. We (youth) use it daily and we’re pretty sure you (adults) do too.
Unfortunately, we constantly face criticism for living in the age of the internet. We are not here to say we aren’t on our phones all the time or that we could improve some of our behaviour, but adults can’t be mad at us for the world that you created. Life would be a lot easier if youth were supported in our 21st century world.
Phones are needed for every aspect of our lives. Social media is one of the main ways we communicate with friends and the world, and our ‘internet world’ is monitored 24-7. We still face the same challenges of growing up as you did. We worry about friends, our style, body image, good grades, parental approval, etc. You didn’t have the internet to make all of this so much more complicated. It’s time to rethink your perspective.
Social media is part of all of our lives. According to Statista, 83 per cent of Canadians have social media. Consider this: do you remember life without a fridge, a phone in your house, or a television? This was part of your world. We don’t know a life without it.
Social media has caused us (and likely adults too) to have more pressure. When you were younger, you probably went through body image struggles when looking at models’ pictures, but you could easily avoid the pictures by throwing out the magazine or switching the channel on television. In 2022, it’s difficult for us to avoid the media in front of us. On every social platform we see ‘perfect people’ or ‘perfect lives’ that make us feel insecure, even on a subconscious level. We constantly feel we aren’t good enough for the people around us and we feel nervous that people will make comments about us. When you were younger, the hate comments you would’ve received were mostly face-to-face. This was difficult, we are sure. Those people were mean.
However, it’s much easier to be cruel behind a screen when you can’t see the person’s face. Online hate is difficult to stop. It doesn’t happen in a place like school where you can report it, and the people can create fake accounts where you don’t even know who said it. Social media causes stress, anxiety and even depression. We are trying to navigate a way to avoid it; however, it’s difficult and we need your support to help us get through it.
In 2022, we are held accountable for all of our mistakes. We hear stories all the time about how adults did this wrong or made this mistake. We hear about the goofy stuff you did and got away with it. We are always told that you don’t want us to make the same mistake. We know that is kind. However, you were able to learn from the stupid stuff you did and moved on with your life. With us, so much is caught on camera, or recorded in a chat. We are told this could be held against us in our future careers, relationships, etc. Aren’t you glad so much of your life was hidden?
Here’s our point: we need your understanding and empathy, not your criticism. Help us by modeling the behaviour you want to see. Use your phone at work, not during dinner. Set up opportunities for us where we are all off of our phones. Yes, we take a bit to get off of our devices, but we will appreciate it when we are.
We also suggest you take a moment to look around at all youth. Have a conversation with some. You might realize that most youth are quite amazing. The internet has allowed us to see why kindness, inclusion and acceptance are all so important in our world. We are forced to mature earlier, and for most of us, we understand the world beyond when you were young. If we were to make a list of your wrong doings at our age versus ours, would your list be shorter? The internet is here to stay. Guide us and help us as we grow up in the age of the internet.
The world we live in has a lot of issues itself like climate change, wars, poverty and polarization. The internet gives us access to all the information we need to be the leaders who help make the world a better place. We need adults to help shape us into the strong individuals who can fix the world you damage. We promise that we are not losing our lives to the internet; although we are struggling, as you may be as well. Help us grow to be the people you judge us for not being.
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Quinn Hamilton and Nadine Woods are students at North Perth Westfield Elementary School.
