What Young Activists Lack

What Young Activists Lack
By Faith Ward

Note: Monthly op-eds are submitted by BYD members and members of the local Democratic community. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Broward Democratic Party executive or its members, or the Broward Young Democrats executive board or its membership.

Everyone knows how on the mind’s scales just a single bit of negativity can dip far below piles of positivity. As I immersed myself in a new world of activism I quickly learned how to keep negativity off the scales altogether. I changed my settings for notifications on social media. I learned to laugh at the comments I received; I didn’t even bat an eye when my friends and I were called Hitler Youth by a stranger online. For many of my friends it was the same: we were left unscathed by all the weird people talking down to us horribly. I learned quickly that the real damage was not done by strangers, but by my friends.

Although the anonymity of the internet was gone, in disagreement the depersonalization remained the same. So many of us had the exact same beliefs and goals, yet we were incapable of meeting a disagreement with anything other than teeth and claws bared. We forgot that we were all aching kids with open wounds trying desperately to get things right as the world watched. Nobody gave us guidelines on how to spearhead change, and you would be amazed to learn how long it can take to figure out that sometimes the best thing anyone can do in contentious situations is stop talking.

I’ve noticed that so many of the speeches we hear these days are written regarding why we act, but not how. So many older people have boldly shouted their support and told us to push on, but have failed to advise us on how. This isn’t to say that we need our hands held every step of the way, but rather that there is some wisdom that we simply haven’t had the time to gain yet. To all of the older activists, if you get the chance please give a little guidance that extends beyond “you guys are doing what we failed to do” or “you kids are the future.” I believe that one of the best ways that older generations can show support to this country’s youth right now is to share with us the secrets that time keeps under lock and key, to help us learn from your mistakes, and to help prevent us from burning out too quickly. We could all use a little extra wisdom these days.