The Problem
South African youth grow up in a society marked by a culture of violence and within that there is a high prevalence of problem behaviours:
Parents, significant adults and caregivers are frequently absent.
The school system and social support systems often fail them.
Personal and social identities are largely weak and their aspirations are often unachievable in a society in which opportunities and resources are so unequally shared.
What does it look like when fixed?
South Africa is a society where
Young people feel safe and secure in their homes and communities.
Young people attend safe schools that encourage self-esteem and learning.
Young people are able to reach their full potential as working adults, involved citizens and caring parents.
What we can do now
- Each one of us needs to find a way of connecting with our youth, particularly those who are disadvantaged.
- As youth we can demand of our schools that they establish outreach and exchange programmes with youth from disadvantaged schools so that we can share, exchange, and talk of the future.
- As parents we can encourage our children to connect with youth in different communities from our own by visiting their schools and their homes in the townships and squatter settlements.
- As staff in organisations we can promote employee volunteering and engage with NGOs and community-based organisations that focus on the youth and give them our support both financially and in kind.
- We can lobby senior management to adopt a "poor" school and help make it more functional as a place of learning.
- We can lobby senior management to sponsor a Y Zone in a disadvantaged community.
- Our energy must be on creating hope for those young people in our society who experience hopelessness.
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