by Written by Anthony Tilghmanhttps://blackpressusa.com/ BlackPress of America
USA BLACKPRESS NEWSWIREOne group is routinely overlooked in every town hall, policy hearing, and neighborhood discussion on the future: our young people.
We discuss their future, enact laws pertaining to their needs, and put policies into place that will directly affect how their lives turn out, but we hardly ever completely include them in the conversation. And it’s frequently symbolic even when we do. A press picture opportunity, a moment at the microphone, or a token seat. Inclusion is not that. its performance.
To be clear, youth voices shouldn’t be considered optional. It ought to be required.
Young people are living the effects of today’s decisions rather than only witnessing them. They travel on packed and occasionally dangerous school buses. They are seated in classrooms that are affected by deteriorating infrastructure and a lack of teachers. They are raised in areas with uneven access to reasonably priced homes, wholesome food, and reliable internet. Many see their loved ones battling with health care inequalities, gun violence, and the growing expense of life. Through record heatwaves, flooding, and school closures, they experience the effects of climate change in their daily lives rather than just in theory.
However, young people are all too frequently encouraged to wait their time when it comes to influencing the policies that deal with these issues, as if political voice and civic duty have an age limit.
In actuality, young people already possess the drive, insight, and ability to lead. They don’t have access.
Youth participation must no longer be viewed as a PR stunt or a feel-good checkbox. Teen activists testify before Congress or speak at climate summits, students organize nationwide walkouts calling for safer schools, and young entrepreneurs start tech companies and nonprofits to address inequality—all of which are exemplifying the kind of leadership we say we want now, not someday.
Real Youth Leadership Across the Nation
Young people nationwide are rising to the occasion and having a discernible influence:
- In Chicago, youth involved in the Mikva Challenge have helped shape city budget priorities and criminal justice reform through youth policy councils embedded in government.
- In Oakland, student organizers successfully lobbied for the elimination of school police, leading to a reinvestment in student support services and restorative justice programs.
- In Florida, the March For Our Lives movement founded by high school students in the aftermath of the Parkland shooting has transformed national conversations on gun safety and led to new state and federal legislation.
- In Alaska, young Indigenous leaders are pushing for climate justice and land protection, blending traditional knowledge with modern advocacy.
These are not examples of the fringe. These demonstrate that everyone gains when we provide young people access, resources, and decision-making capacity.
We are not tomorrow’s leaders, as New York activist Naila Williams, 17, stated during a youth policy meeting. At the moment, we are in the lead. Our futures are already being negotiated, but tomorrow is not certain.
What the Data Shows
As stated by Tufts University’s Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE):
- Communities that actively integrate youth in decision-making through school boards, advisory councils, or participatory budgeting see higher civic engagement, better school attendance, and more equitable policy outcomes.
- In Takoma Park, Maryland, 16- and 17-year-olds were granted the right to vote in municipal elections, and in the first year, they turned out at twice the turnout rate of older voters.
- States and districts that invest in youth leadership programs, like California s Youth Empowerment Commission or Boston s Youth Council, report stronger trust between youth and government and increased diversity in leadership pipelines.
These results are not merely theoretical. Instead of only encouraging youth voice, they are the direct result of institutionalizing it.
Building a Culture of Youth Power
Imagine a mandatory young representative who is empowered, educated, and granted actual voting power in each state legislature, local council, and school board. Imagine high schools hosting town halls instead of simply country clubs. Consider public finances that are jointly created by stakeholders who are adults and youth. This vision is not radical. It is the ideal manifestation of true democracy.
The framework of our institutions—government, charity, nonprofits, the media, and business—must incorporate youth participation. This entails providing funds for leadership development, establishing a pipeline from classrooms to boardrooms, and guaranteeing that young people may serve on task forces, commissions, and legislative bodies with compensation, guidance, and genuine clout.
This also entails reconsidering our definition of expertise. Whether a 14-year-old is facing housing insecurity, a 19-year-old is spearheading a climate strike, or a 16-year-old is navigating mental health treatment for themselves and their classmates, experience is not something that is acquired over decades but is lived on a daily basis. When making decisions, these experiences should be taken into consideration.
The Stakes Are Too High to Exclude the Youth Voice
I’ve worked in education, managed after-school programs, and collaborated with children across the country, so I can attest to the creativity and urgency that young people offer when given the chance to take the lead. I’ve also witnessed how frequently that genius is disregarded due to antiquated hierarchies, adultism, or a fear of upsetting the status quo.
But we need disruption, that’s what.
This has nothing to do with seating young kids at a table that has already been arranged. Rebuilding the table with their leadership as a cornerstone is the goal.
Incrementalism is insufficient to address our nation’s pressing problems, which include economic disparity, gun violence, climate change, and the decline of democracy. Those who will be affected by every choice we make must be heard if we are to find practical, long-lasting, and progressive answers.
The youth are prepared. They were prepared. All we need to ask is, are we prepared to follow their example?
Youth participation should no longer be viewed as an extravagance, a side project, or a project supported by a one-time grant. Youth Voice is not a nonprofit. It’s not additional. It is essential.
Tilghman, Anthony
Award-winning photojournalist, author, mentor, and educator Anthony Tilghman founded Anthony Tilghman Enterprises. He has experience in branding, marketing, and photography. His work, which includes coverage of events like the Grammy Awards and the Presidential Inauguration, has appeared in publications including Black Enterprise and The Washington Post. Tilghman discusses social injustice, bullying, and personal development in his novels From Homeless to Cool, Bull the Bully, and Black Male, Black Hoodie. He is the Executive Director of Make Smart Cool, a nonprofit organization that encourages communities and young people to appreciate education, and a three-time Dateline Award recipient. Visit www.makesmart.cool to find out more.
