Did WE Hold the Power?

In reading this article about YIA, I liked the fact it gave us a little more history behind the organization, but also included excerpts from members on the various topics mentioned. One of the first statements I felt I agreed with a lot was from Adeola Oredola in saying that, "youth are consistently better at taking the lead than most adults I know." I feel this is very accurate in the sense that even in a setting with very young children, I have seen them work together and also act as leaders without even realizing it. Also, having been a class officer of my student body in high school, I first-handedly took part in taking the lead. Thinking back to this makes me realize that when you have someone that is directly affected by the decisions being made and is personally experiencing the events taking place, they seem to have more effective input because it's something real to them that they are living and see and feel what could be beneficial or not.

Something else I can relate to, although very different circumstances in regards to reason for doubt, is the expression from Nwando Ofokansi, "like what I'm not supposed to be capable of saying or doing because of my age, or the perceived lack of beauty and intelligence among my race." As I said, I cannot directly relate to the reason for doubt due to race, but in my case, I have always been doubted by the members of my family. The lack of success and "greatness" my mother has achieved in the eyes of my family has reflected on the person I am "supposed" to be. In their eyes I wasn't supposed to go to college, I wasn't supposed to make the Dean's List, I wasn't supposed to earn a scholarship and study abroad, I wasn't "supposed" to do a lot of things I have accomplished and still aspire to.  Thankfully, although it took time, I met people in my life along the way that provided me with the guidance and push I needed, along with support and the belief in me that I could be something great, the belief I never experienced from my family or even really had in myself.

As a youth, it is difficult to express your opinions and really stand up for what you believe in for numerous reasons. There are countless factors that keep us from doing so and many youth have a difficult time stepping out of the "destiny" or future others see/predict for them.  I feel all of what YIA stands for and their mission is incredible and crucial to youth in society today. The idea of school curriculum being more relevant to the lives of students and them providing input and ideas is great and could be very powerful.

Most importantly, how crucial it is to stand beside one another. Fight as a force, join together for support and a louder voice. Not to say one person can't make a difference by themselves, but it sure does make a more powerful movement with peers behind you every step of the way. I see the world becoming a more unified movement in the future because the youth that are beginning it now will soon be our older population, carrying the importance of young voices with them and spreading it worldwide.