Gun and Knife Violence: Dying To Be Cool
by This is about the youth of today in the UK, and how there has been an epidemic in recent years of gun and knife violence.
The youngters of today are killing each other on our streets and it is actually getting out of hand. Too many teenagers are turning to violence and carrying weapons to protect themselves against each other. The streets have become corners of territory for gangs and it really does feel like our days are numbered.
This year alone more than 20 teenagers have fallen victim knife violence in the UK and it has got to a point where we ask ourselves, who is to blame? We could blame the government, we could blame the parents, we could lay blame in all areas but who can really take responsibility of this growing epidemic within our society?
Many have said that the governement needs to introducde tougher laws to act as a deterrant to those carrying any form of weapon, some have even said the parents should take responsibility of their children and make sure they are not getting involved with the wrong crowd. The truth is we need to give our youth something to inspire and motivate them, so many teenagers these days come from broken homes and this is a serious problem. Family values have gone out of the window and on to the streets, and our youth are suffering, they are lost in a society that they feel does not care. Personally I think they need to take responsibility of their actions but at the same time every community should have a place for its youth to go when school is over. Every community should have a youth group where kids can go and make friends that come from good homes, where they can connect with a mentor who is young enough to have experienced the problems they might be experiening as a teenager growing up in the western world. There are a few government funded initiatives in and around London but there is not enough. Single mothers need help especially raising boys, raising a young man with a father present is hard enough as it is let alone being a single mother with no male role model to support her.
We need to find a solution before things get any worse, I mean can they get any worse? The world seems like it is coming to an end and we as a nation do not know where to turn. Society has become scared of the youth, frightened of todays yob culture amongst inner city teenagers. Where do we turn? What can we do? The youth seem like they are just dying to be cool.
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Post CommentCyn Bagley
On June 13, 2008 at 9:40 am
Just this week we had three teenagers gunned down in our small city (Reno, Nevada). Two died and one is in critical condition. It was gang-related. Those kinds of things hardly happen here so it was quite a shock.
Who to blame? lack of discipline, broken homes, and the availability of gangs.
There is no discipline in the schools or in the private homes. Children are allowed to run free with no limits. Usually both parents work… or there is only one parent.
I started to see this pattern in the 1960s after women’s liberation. No one picked up the slack of raising the kids. And, of course they, children and teenagers, are suffering.
Yours, Cyn
e jackson
On June 13, 2008 at 10:24 am
great comment! and you are actually right. I appreciate your feedback on this topic! as it really is getting out of hand!
Lucy Lockett
On June 15, 2008 at 7:15 pm
There isn’t a quick fix to this situation but we need to all bear responsibility for it. If we shared a sense of community and some love and light, it would go a long way!
e jackson
On June 18, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Thanks for the comment lucy! you are right!
Huzzinator
On September 28, 2008 at 9:33 am
Im a 16 year old youth, and I have wrote an article on east london youth – its currently pending and will probably be available soon. Its kind of an essay of what iv’e seen as a teenager living in london.