Young people remain a highly contested group within our society.

There has always been the risk of instrumentalisation as young people have often been (mis)understood as simply there to engender consumerism, exemplify consumption and create trouble.  I believe that this analysis is incorrect and unfair. The positioning of this population in the community is complex and multifarious.  Youth is far from being a homogeneous group and even though it should be ‘a time of opportunity’ there are still major challenges that need to be faced.  In other words, young people remain one of the most contested populations that navigate in our communities.  In most instances our thinking about "youth" shifts from considering them as senseless and responsible-free to conscious, choosing, autonomous, and self-regulatory.

There is a segment within this population that merits our courtesy and responsiveness because a minority within this populace can be considered 'at risk' due to the social circumstances that relegate them.

Let us try to understand what is bruising this group of young people. 

I think we need to face the fact that there is a cluster of young people who are positioned at a social disadvantage but not out of their own making.

They unsuccessfully try to find solace in family and community life, are let down by them and the welfare and other state and voluntary support systems. These young people play into the deceiving label of vulnerability in myriad ways, not only economically, socially and culturally but also in terms of gender, ethnicity, religious affiliation, sexual orientation and health and personal wellbeing amongst other.

We need to understand the frustrations and vexations of these young people.  They are being short-changed because communities do not always offer them ‘spaces’ they promise they would and are often perceived as ‘the stranger’ because they are different and not middle-of-the-road. They are often defined by criteria and measurements that create tensions and bring about injustice and inequality. 

I will be the first to resist homogenising this population, however, on many fronts we are simply disengaged with their needs and voice.  These young people in many ways are helpless and hopeless. 

Now we need to understand that the longing for social affiliation is a fundamental human need especialy for adoloscents.  There are individual differences and a need for belonging-ness. Community adheres unambiguously to the code of social justice in a world in which, absurdly, we are faced with mounting crises shaped by social detachments. 

To help me illustrate these points I would like to share the story of a young transsexual man:

I don’t feel vulnerable because I was always able to take tough decisions in my life.  At 5 years I already had to take care of my sister and cook for her.  It is a fact that there were moments when I wanted to hide my past, to forget all I went through because of the pain that that created in me but now I feel relaxed and I accept myself.  I remember having to bandage my breasts so that I would look like a boy.  I obviously couldn’t go swimming because I was so embarrassed to do so.  I was so confused at the time.  At 17 years I started having operations which caused a great deal of physical pain but I was always satisfied and happy that I took that decision.  I started taking decisions on the operations I needed to do when I was still young.  In fact, I had to do a hysterectomy, remove my breasts and am now preparing for the most difficult and complicated operation in my genitalia.  When still very young I wasn’t happy and comfortable with myself. I always felt that I was in the wrong body.  But I believe that at the end of the day it’s up to ‘you’ if you want to live a lie.  It is a fact that I still suffer from at times because of what people say and do but my focus is to get on with life.  For example, the parents of my girlfriend (with whom I have been going out with for these last two years) do not accept me at all.  I’ve also had a turbulent relationship with my dad – he was never supportive of what I was going through.  On the other hand, my relationship with mum is perfect, it is very good. I feel lucky in that respect because my mum never judged me but provided me with all the necessary support and was close to me.  She allowed me to take my own decisions.  I feel that my mother not only understood me but provided me with all the support required.  I wasn’t bullied too much because my friends remained loyal to me both when I was still a girl and even during and after the transition.  In terms of services I was left completely on my own and no social services supported me in any effective way.  I only went to the psychiatrist because it is obligatory to do so as part of the transition process.  Having said that the psychiatrist was extremely supportive and understanding.  When I asked for some help from the school counsellor at secondary school he had no idea how to help me.  The only organisation that tried to get involved and to support me was MGRM.  Nowadays I live a normal life, I work, I study, I go out with friends.

                                                                                                                                                Zack, young transsexual

 

So those labelled as ‘vulnerable’ young people, as we read in this narrative, want solutions to their problems.

They recognise the need for personal effort and commitment (typified by Zack’s story), but also know that their problems cannot be overcome without the support of others, in particular, their parents, family and friends; professionals; social and education services; the voluntary sector and the wider community.  These young people who have been victimised expect to be part of the community rather than wait submissively for an opportunity to come their way.  They want to be able to influence the matters that concern them. Being superficially ‘open’ to young people’s desires is not remotely good enough.  What is required is that we have adequate social structures that fill in for the void these young people are often faced with, weak structures that are not out of choice of their own even because young people feel the need, like all of us, to search for a sense of belonging and connection with those around them. Being a member of a community is a source of identity, stability and support but one that needs to be reciprocal, inclusive and accepting.

Having everyone included whatever the background or narrative expands our moral currency.