We h
ave all heard the saying, “The youth are our future.” But is the Black community looking at its future? And how is the community supporting the wellness of that future? Are we checking in on the young? Is no one concerned about the future?
Hitting the youth from all sides are academic demands, hectic, disorganized social life, financial challenges, social justice and community issues. This affects their mental health, just like it does with adults. Please stop counting for a moment, and loosen your grip on the holster while allowing me to shed some light on the challenges that confront young people daily and provide some insight into what is needed from the Black community in order for the “future” to maintain mental wellness.
The young people should be made to understand that there are various ways to be successful in life. While achieving the highest grade might seem like a great motivator in the minds of the youth, it also sounds like they think grades are the only way to measure how smart they are. Let them know that being book smart is not the only way to be successful in life.
Help the future prioritize sleep. Parents, do not just bask in the pride that your child has their own room in the house when you have no clue as to how the future is managing in the room. Are they resting enough? Stress affects sleep. Step in and help them. Create a plan for rest. Set boundaries so that the future is assured and protected. We cannot allow them to be sucked into negative trends and toxic situations.
Let the future steer away from TikTok and listen to the tick of another clock. Help the youth find balance. Remember they are watching and learning from us adults. So do not tell them how idiotic and stupid the newest trend seems, and then buy into it yourself. In the world of the future, they can feel out of the loop if they do not have a certain type of game, app or style. Help the future to find balance.
Validate their anxiety about the future. Strange but nevertheless true, the future also worries about their future. The situation that presents the most anxiety for the youth is life after school. There is the lingering fear that there is nothing “to fall back on” when they fail to achieve a goal. Viewed through adult lenses, it may not seem detrimental, but a different view emerges when seen through the eyes of the future. It is in moments like these that the future needs the community to relate to them and inspire them. Guidance, wisdom and understanding is needed.
Most importantly, teach the youth how to fail without letting failure define them, as community wealth and mental health is interwoven.
According to Franklin Delano Roosevelt: “We can not always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.”
