The young folks, on the other hand, focused on their desire to contribute, to do more. They expressed strong yearning for purpose, for meaning, for ways to be useful to the wider community, especially in non-patronizing, intergenerational efforts. There is a disconnect here between what adults perceive young people need and what young people really want. We have fallen into the habit of expecting too little of our young people when, all the while, they want to shake off pessimism and contribute their gifts and talents. Communities abound with opportunities for young people to contribute, but their participation is too often marginalized and tokenized.
Young people have the gifts and talents to raise their villages.
They lack only the confidence of their villages in them to do it. Fortunately for all of us, young people themselves are taking the initiative to redefine their relationships with the rest of the village. In community after community, young people are reasserting their identity as subjects and actors, as people with a broad range of capacities and resources to contribute to the well-being of their villages. In fact, contrary to media stories that state again and again how apathetic youth are, young people have been organizing themselves as contributors to our communities. Public Allies, an organization founded at a Wingspread conference four years ago, places young leaders from diverse backgrounds, 'Allies,' in community service apprenticeships in six cities throughout the United States.