Our society is one that has increasingly turned to the widespread dehumanization and discrimination against the young. Legal curfews have been imposed on youth to keep them inside at night. Tracking, drug testing, and even using a special machine that emits an obnoxious noise to shoo away teenagers (its called the Mosquito has become an acceoted part of daily life. Every day, children and adolescents walk into oublic schools with no regard for their basic civil rights. They are suspended for chewing Pop-Tarts into the shape of a gun, beaten with paddles for being unable to answer questions correctly, expelled for bringing Ibuprofen into class, penalized for having red eyes (perceived to be evidence of marijuana use) after crying over the deaths of family member, and ridiculed when they try to fight back against these policies. Need I also mention that hundreds of children die every year because their parents refuse to give them basic medical care because of their religious beliefs? Perhaps the most sinister fact of all is that "boot camps" are being built: prison camps, often constructed and managed in foreign countries to escape regulation, where teens are sent off for "behaviour modification" that often amounts to torture, humiliation, and even outright murder. Of course, our politicians don't dare mention these camps or try to fight them; that would be acting as though minors are human beings!That's scary stuff Now, why is this? Why has our society failed it's young so dramatically? I'll tell you why: the bourgeosie is afraid. While the young are often immmature and idealistic, they are the engine of human progress. Always remember that the civil rights movement was not fueled by old white men, but by enthusiastic youths with a passion for equality. Never forget that it was the young that protested U.S. imperialism during the war in Vietnam. Young people are open to new ideas. We here at Revleft know that--a huge portion of us are still in our teens. That's because it's at that age that people form their own ideas independently. By the time most people are in their thirties, they have become sheep--mere agents of the Establishment. But when they were young, they were ready and willing to embrace ideas that previous generations would have scoffed at. That's the duty of each generation: to open up its eyes and recognize the failures of those who preceded them; to learn from their mistakes and drag the world forward. There are many whi would seek to destroy hat progress! Idealism does not benefit them; only dollars and caviar satisfy their greed. They don't want freedom for others; they want wealth and power for themselves--and lots of it! And the last thing the bourgeosie wants is a bunch of vivacious young whippersnappers screaming for the welfare of the wretched of the earth. So they fight back. They demonize the young. How often do you hear about the teen who performed CPR and saved a life, or the teen who won an award for inventing a phone charger that does all its work in seconds, or the teen who started a charity dedicated to freeing slaves around the world? NEVER! They exist, but their stories are covered up and ignored. Instead, we learn about kids like Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, and slowly internalize the idea that all young people are violent and destructive. As for the claims that the "teen brain" is immature, those studies are flawed. They analyze one part of the brains of teens and whenever something different is discovered about it, they assume that it's inferior. How often are we told that MRI scans explain why people in their forties have mid-life crises, or why the elderly can be grumpy? NEVER! Because analyzing any adult's character based off of lights on a monitor would be considered dehumanizing and offensive. Let's face it, folks: we need to reconsider the way we look at minors; especially adolescents, who have borne the brunt of the bigotry. Some of this country's greatest geniuses, like Alexander Hamilton, had already headed off to college at age fourteen. The only reason fourteen year olds aren't mature enough to do that today is because we hold them back and give them more than a few reasons to be angry and rebellious. I rest my case. Communism will never materialize unless we learn to hold a large group of people very likely to support it dignity, respect, and some real consideration. Down with ageism and the scoundrels responsible for it!
The USA is among the worst with Ageism. Even at 18, you are not a full adult.
