By De’Jia – Special Contributor

Adults need to understand that the way teens act isn’t a phase. Teens are people. When older people talk about us they make us seem lazy and give us less credit than we deserve. We have ideas that we believe in, but we are pulled from our reality and pushed into yours because of things that are said about us in the presence of the people that we will one day have to help. Teens and millennials are the future that the world is bringing up, so if adults don’t have more faith in us we are going to fall with no back up.

For us, there are no stupid ideas. If we just have support and a little faith nothing would be impossible.

Adults also need to know the world is changing and they are setting it up for our future. If they mess it up now, we’re going to spend forever trying to clean it up and we won’t have any time to actually change it. We have plans that we want to put into action when possible but with new administration in our country we are scared of threats that could be in the way one day.

My world is filled with school, family, and friends. Friends that I have educated conversations with. My friends and I speak about politics and what is going on in our world. We are affected by all of the complicated and terrible things that happen one way or another. When I was little I didn’t have any hatred for people, but as I have gotten older I’ve seen discrimination and racism in multiple forms against people who look like me from people my age. That pure hatred in the form of words didn’t just show up out of nowhere. Our parents, adults I may add, put that hatred and fear into us and that is what I want gone.

At school in AP Human geography when we have conversations about people I just sit and listen to all of the hatred that we put out into our world.

I may seem childish when I say this but, I’ve never understood why we can’t just be happy with each other.

We are all humans, we have different beliefs and ideas and that’s why, we as human beings have fear of difference and change. But everything is already changing so we should get over being afraid of the different and unknown.

The thing is this isn’t a “teenage world” or an “Adult world.” We all live in the same time and place; however, we are not all affected by the same things in the same way.  One day things will come back and take the toll they are supposed to. In the past when younger people would have ideas, that were probably way better, they’d be shut down immediately. That still happens and it needs to change fast otherwise, we are going to stop offering our opinions.

Millennials are the future and we are making new jobs and opportunities for ourselves and others. So try and not make the world suck ahead of time. We want change. We want better for our future and our children’s future. That’s what the ideas in our heads do. That’s what the words do, the thoughts. they are all the beginning. Change is coming. When my class, the class of 2020 graduates from college in 2024, change is coming. Don’t be scared. Let it happen. The future isn’t all as bad at it seems. Unless the future that we’re thinking of now doesn’t happen. It’s been a long time coming.

De’Jia is a beautiful, confident 15-year-old flautist, who loves her own writing. When complimented by her mother on this article she replied, “Mama, I know it is awesome, I already made a copy of it.” She is the oldest of 3 and regularly teaches her parents about the hardships of teenage life.

[Editor’s Note]

As we near the close of Women’s History Month 2017, we have curated you five (5) several pieces from some pretty amazing guest bloggers. Who are they? They are all empowered young women who we asked one of the following questions:

What is important to you?

What is it like to be a girl in your world?

What is something you think Adults need to know about your world?

SIL Blog would like to extend a tremendous “THANK YOU” to these young ladies and their parents for sharing their message, lending their voices, and starting conversations that we should be having with each other, and especially our kids. Thank you for celebrating  Women’s History Month 2017 with us in such a meaningful way.