Dion Jeffers

tunapunayouthleague@hotmail.com

Youth - a reflection of society

Sociology in its simplest form is described as the scientific study of human behaviour. It is believed by sociologists that no one person is independently responsible for the type of lifestyle he or she practises. Instead, it is argued that human beings are the product of the social environment to which they are exposed.

Time and time again, we hear people complaining that the attitude of a friend or colleague changed for one reason or another, usually attributing this to a negative connotation.

An individual may have trained in the police service, defence force or one of the other services, leaving as a totally different individual to when they first entered. This is totally normal and expected, but instead of understanding and accepting this change in behavioural patterns which is supposed to be for the better, we criticise and offend.

It is said that it takes a village to raise a child. Many would argue that the society today has strayed from that position. To the contrary, however, upon closer examination one can deduce that this same analogy continues to apply today with the only difference being the manner in which the child is raised.

The ‘good ole days’

In years gone by, the older people were regarded as exemplars within the society. The ways in which individuals interacted with each other were commendable. One would hear stories of the “good ole days” when the fear of crime was limited to petty thefts and larceny which existed on a small scale.

The good old days were regarded as a time when one could leave their house open and go out for hours at a time with very little concern about being the victim of a house-breaking.

It was regarded as a time (according to the late Richard “Nappy” Mayers) when we all “lived like brothers, respected one another...in times gone by we used to share, together we make do and if I draw a sou-sou, what was mine was yours too.”

Where has this society gone?

The new society

A few days ago, 11 men were charged with the kidnap and murder of a business woman. Upon approaching the entrance to the court house, one could here the loud applause and cheers from the relatives and friends of these individuals.

Last Friday, police and soldiers raided the Beetham Gardens in the continued war on crime. The end result was residents coming out in frustration and criticising the actions of the police.

How many people give a response to “good afternoon,” “good evening”or “good night?”

We see people blocking roads, burning tyres in protest. We see politicians and businessmen being charged with corruption. Leaders saying “do dem before dey do we.” Parents telling children not to take “no lash from nobody.”

The point to all of this is that this is the type of society that children are being exposed to. This is the type of values (if we should call it that) that they learn. Today the village continues to raise the child but the child is being raised in a manner which will never engender a spirit of positive values.

We say that we make the child but we didn’t make the mind. We may not have made the mind but we have the capacity to develop it by our actions, interactions and examples.

Importance of family

The family remains the basic primary unit for social development. It is at this stage that a child learns most of the qualities which he tends to display as he gets older. A young girl would dress in her mother’s clothes and shoes and play mother. A young boy would play with cars and try to fix things, mimicking the behaviour of his father. They do these things because this is what they see.

On the negative side, we hear children at an early age using obscenities and playing “mannish”and ask ourselves where they learned this type of behaviour. Maybe if we look in the mirror we might find the answer.

Too often we see our children going astray and refuse to lead them along the right path, failing to recognise that the child is a product of us.

Parents need to understand their roles. They give up their responsibilities having already fractured the mind of their vulnerable sons and daughters and expect the teachers to correct this and then blame the education system.

The behaviour of our young people today should be no surprise. It is as a direct result of negative adult influence. As adults and parents we need to recognise how important lifestyles are in a developing society. We need to take responsibility and be cognisant of the type of lifestyles we display.

It is time that we stop blaming everyone from government to teachers and friends of our children for the attitude of children. We need to engender positive attitudes in our daily routine, even when we think that no one is looking. It is only when this is done that the society can begin to engender a feeling of love for another.

So next time we hear or see a young person acting in a manner which is reprehensible, instead of saying that we don’t know what happen to the young people of today, maybe we should take a second, third and forth look at ourselves and see what type of example we are setting.

Contact NYL with comments at nylcolumnguardian@yahoo.com or editorial committee, National Youth League, Balisier House, #1 Tranquillity St, Port-of-Spain.

Dion Jeffers is chairman of the PNM’s National Youth League