By Bartoli, Jill Sunday
Young people’s pessimism has dramatically increased, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent survey. We wonder what is going on and what we can do about it as parents, grandparents, teachers, and many other loving individuals.
Our children watch people at home worrying about groceries, medical care, rent, clothes, transportation, and many other expenses, knowing that their minimum wage job cannot support them. They are also exposed to constant wars and violence in the media. Too many families find their lives made even more difficult by climate disasters, especially those who lack the funds to relocate or rebuild.
Many Carlisle residents recall their involvement in the Community Cares overnight in churches program, which provided housing for homeless persons. Families and individuals who were homeless might spend the night in a nearby church prior to COVID-19.
Affordably priced housing and well-paying jobs to support it are the true answers for individuals who are homeless. However, it was an effort to unite the churches and compassionate individuals in our community to work together on a common program of short-term care and compassion.
Our young people may wonder what happened to the kind, compassionate society when they hear about other communities enacting laws and other sanctions against those who sleep outside in cardboard boxes or tents, which are frequently the only options available to those who are homeless.
Is it possible to reconstruct societies based on empathy and reverence for life?
Can our rage and indignation over the injustices we witness inspire us to band together and create hope-filled communities for our young people?
We must show our children that progress, transformation, change, and doing good in the world are all within our and their grasp. Research indicates that the ability to improve the world is innate, even in the face of contradicting facts.
In Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a decent Society, Nicholas Christakis explores why, in spite of the ways we are misled, we still create decent societies. He provides numerous instances of how people are inclined to work together, form friendships, and divide resources fairly. He writes in 2019 that society is generally nice and that there are more things that bring people together than separate them.
Consider the antagonistic Supreme Courts, governors of the South, and presidents who steadfastly upheld racial hatred, segregation, and slavery.
To build a more fair society, individuals banded together, organized, and resisted giving in to feelings of helplessness and despair.
Following George Floyd’s murder in 2019, people of all ages, cultures, and backgrounds came together to march, reminding everyone that hope is essential to social change. We must quit wringing our hands and keep in mind that we have had antagonistic leaders in the past, and we have persisted in organizing and bringing about change.
One of the many reasons I respect our public school instructors is that they consistently demonstrate their belief in each student’s ability to learn when they enter a classroom. The foundation of our public, community-based education system is the conviction that, given the right conditions, tools, and motivation, every young person has the potential to learn and change the world. And nothing is impossible when schools and communities collaborate to support young people and their families.
All our children need to witness is that we are collaborating to make our town and the globe a better place. Envision our neighborhood banding together to construct a nonprofit solar panel factory, creating hundreds of fantastic clean energy jobs (see Cherp.org).
Imagine such jobs being available to low-income and reentering community members, allowing them to purchase better solar panels for their homes, cheaper housing, and power.
We would be creating a compassionate community that offers excellent jobs to support family housing, lower electricity bills, and benefit the environment, while other towns criminalize impoverished and homeless families. This won’t be simple. Fredrick Douglass reminds us that progress cannot be made without battle.
My kitchen window displays a gift from a close friend. Be the happiness [hope] you want to see in the world, it says. We must teach our children that happiness and hope are created, not just discovered. In order to create a better society and a more optimistic world, they must witness us cooperating to fortify communities of hope throughout dangerous times.
Former Elizabethtown College professor Jill Sunday Bartoli. From Carlisle, Pennsylvania, she writes.