Give today's teens a break

It seems to me that the youth of today are under constant contemptuous and often unfair criticism.

We are lazier and more unmotivated than a sloth. We are destroying the fundamental groundwork of the economy and of human culture. We are an unhealthy, anti-social, unintelligent, good-for-nothing bunch of babies - or so it seems according to our predecessors.

As a member of the aforementioned generation, I think I can safely say that we are all quite tired of hearing the same lecture from people who had it easier in the past.

First and foremost, a bachelor's degree from an university no longer "guarantees" a job for us anymore, as much as we are led to believe that it does.

Yet, the prospects of a decent career in any field are far lower if we do not have a degree. Once upon a time, a high school diploma was enough to carry a person through life, but a bachelor's degree is quickly becoming the new minimum.

The average cost for tuition has been continuously rising, with wages not keeping up with inflation rates. We have little choice but to get a post-secondary education, however we are doomed to graduate burdened by tens of thousands of dollars in student debt, only to find that we're not "experienced" or "educated" enough for a good portion of jobs out there.

Despite this, we still have to bend over backwards to get ourselves into a post-secondary institution. We absolutely must have phenomenal results in school, while at the same time balance a part-time job, a number of extra-curricular activities, volunteer work for the community and a blossoming social life.

There are only 24 hours in a day, and we are expected to have at least eight hours of sleep unless we want to be scolded for not getting enough.

School takes up about seven hours, and that's already more than half the day gone - not including time to eat, shower or do any of our daily chores. After school, we return home to spend countless hours doing homework, studying, playing a sport or practising on an instrument. It's almost like we're not allowed to have time for ourselves without being tagged as "lazy," "unproductive" or "anti-social."

Which raises another question altogether: How are we "anti-social" when we are surrounded by social media?

It's a disparity in generational mind sets.

No doubt that we are typically more tech-savvy than youths of 50 years past, which means that our generation's culture is vastly different than that of pre-Internet eras.

We're constantly in touch with our friends, no matter where they are in the world. Using a variety of platforms - be it text, call, Skype or Hangout - we are always socializing with our friends. Granted, nothing can completely replace a face-to-face interaction, but tagging an entire generation of kids as "antisocial" because of our use of social media says more about unwillingness to accept change than anything else.

Growing up alongside technology, we've learnt to become more globally aware than ever before, thanks to the Internet's capability of bringing together people from around the world.

A few decades ago, the environment wasn't in the forefront of society's concerns - nor were the rights of minority groups like women, LGBTQ or various ethnicities.

Today, being environmentally friendly is an integral part of our culture, as are affirming the rights of all previously ignored groups.

Additionally, we no longer stigmatize psychological conditions such as depression or anxiety; rather, they are now treated as the legitimate medical issues they are.

Does this all sound like one giant self pat on the back for our generation? Perhaps.

But for us, who are growing up in an era of terrorism, economic crisis, paranoid surveillance, alarmist media, global warming and unfair berating for being an all-around terrible generation, I think we deserve to appreciate ourselves every once in a while.

Joey Chan is a Grade 12 student at Terry Fox Secondary in Port Coquitlam.