hiding from dinner.

It is safe to say that the teenagers of our generation are underestimated. There is a notion that all high school students get into car crashes every week, love MTV, and are irresponsible. It is not a fair judgement, but the teens who live life in the fast lane are the ones that are heard. It doesn’t help that there is rarely good coverage of teenagers working-and succeeding- to make a difference.

Take Zach Hunter, a modern day abolitionist who has published a book (a good one), and appeared on television segments on CNN and Good Morning America. He works to abolish modern-day slavery, such as bonded labor and forced prostitution. He started a foundation called Loose Change to Loosen Chains when he was in 7th grade. Today, Zach Hunter is only 15. There is a reason that so few people have heard of him. A story about a drunken teens getting into a car accident makes better news than a teen working to save those who cannot save themselves.

Thus, a vicious cycle forms. All the majority hears is stories about reckless teens, because they appeal, then stereotypes and clichés form. Positive news is frowned upon. This is where in the underestimation of teens stems from, the blaming the actions of a loud few on the silent whole. This teenage generation is deemed as uninformed, reckless, unfocused.

Yet, how can we be uninformed if we are educated enough to form opinions and be willing to debate them? How can we be reckless if there are groups standing up against drunken driving, and against the desensitization of youth? How can we all not be capable of focusing, if we are surviving at one of the toughest high schools in the state?

What the world doesn’t realize is that there is power in the hands of the youth. We can be the most outspoken in a crowd; we are excellent at predicting the next big music group or the next fashion trend. Parents are finding that their teenager is more internet savvy than the entire household.

Teenagers produce a fresh point of view, and while adults are trying to muscle through walls, teens find ways to go around the roadblock. It takes a fresh mind to be able to watch television, carry on a conversation, and listen to music, all while being focused on homework. This is the type of multi-tasking mindset teenagers have, and it could be put to great use if given a chance.

Seen in one hand as the unknowing underdog, and in the other as the future of a nation, teenagers are highly underestimated through preconceptions.