I Was Invited To Speak To Teenagers...and It Got Political

I actually feel bad for them because they have no control over what's going on around them as children, and that line between child and adult concerns has melted away, unfortunately.

Recently, I was invited by a non-profit to speak in front of kids who are around 13 years old about my two books. They read a chapter from each book and got to ask me any question they had.

It was overall a very positive experience, but I noticed how political these kids are. And I don't know if this is a good thing.

For background, these are kids who are part of a summer program, and some may be considered high-risk due to coming from less fortunate home lives.

While I was there, I didn't dive into their personal lives, but it's always interesting how much you can learn about someone based on the types of questions they ask you.

For example, in my book “Black Victim to Black Victor”, I talk about how my mother did everything she possibly could to avoid government assistance so she could be self-sufficient. One girl asked multiple times about my views on government assistance.

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Her question was, "Do you believe no one should be on government assistance since your mother wasn't on it?"

I answered her question by saying that life is difficult, and we all need help at times. Sometimes we get help from friends and family; sometimes we might turn to the government for help temporarily.

However, the problem is that government assistance is a trap because, in many cases, to get assistance, you need to be completely impoverished just to get a little bit of help when most just need a little breathing room for a short time.

Since they read part of my book “The Children We Left Behind”, one boy asked, "For a child who went through something like you did, what would you tell them?"

I told him that your father, mother, or both of your parents mistreating you or abandoning you is not your fault nor a measure of your worth. It's easy for children to take ownership of adult failures, so it's important for these kids to leave the fault at the feet of the people who are responsible for it.

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For many years, I thought the reason my father didn't want to be in my life was because something was wrong with me, and that low self-worth remained and permeated many aspects of my adult life.

When it appeared that the kids had no more questions, I asked if my book had an impact on them, good or bad. One girl raised her hand and said that when she first read one of my chapters, she was upset and had to leave the room.

However, she admitted that she thought about it some more over the next couple of days, and it ultimately had a positive impact on her.

When I thought we were coming to an end, that's when the conversation shifted from discussing my books to overt political discussions.

One girl brought up George Floyd and why I wasn't impacted by it as a Black man. To summarize, I told her that the outcome or circumstances, whether positive or negative, of a Black person I don't know is not indicative of me. I can feel empathetic for someone who died in such a way, but my question is, why am I being compelled to be overly emotional about a stranger who happens to share my skin tone?

I proceeded to give a brief lecture on how the media works, especially as a member of the media. The objective is to make you feel, not think. People who are emotive are better consumers than thinkers.

You have to ask yourself, why this story out of the many stories you'll never hear about? There is something there, a hook that will get your interest and emotions attached.

Lastly, a young man asked me if I think the media is lying about the current administration when it comes to illegal immigration. At this point, I asked the counselor if it was okay to proceed with answering since it was a very political question. They confirmed it was alright to answer.

I told him that every nation has immigration laws and enforces them (some are more consistent than others). I told him about a U.S. soldier who crossed into North Korea, and even they deported him. Who is within our borders is incredibly important, and this is not a U.S. concern but a worldwide concern.

This is the short version of a much more detailed answer I gave. I could tell that some kids didn't agree with my answers throughout the hour-and-a-half Q&A, but I always acknowledged that they may not agree, yet I appreciated their time.

After leaving there, I was thinking about it, and I knew what felt different for me about this experience: When I was their age, I didn't care about anything political, and now politics is everywhere.

I actually feel bad for them because they have no control over what's going on around them as children, and that line between child and adult concerns has melted away, unfortunately. They're years away from even voting, yet they are worried about supposed injustices that are happening far away from them.

Overall, I had a good experience. Despite their not agreeing at times through their body language, they kept their opinions to themselves and were always polite to me as a guest.

I know some of the things I said they had probably never heard before, and I hope, just like that one girl, my words stay with them in the future.