Teenagers Are Not What You Think!!!

I. J. Samson Junior High
St. John's, Newfoundland

By Miles W.(Grade 9)

Hey! Us teenagers are people to! I think of this as I walk through the Village Mall. I pass by "A Buck Or Two" and I see the big brown sign with the offensive white letters that says, "All children must be supervised by adults." These few words send thoughts of anger raging through my head. The first thought is that we, the future generation, and the future customers, are not welcome, and that adults are trusted more than children. To me, this is only one thing - discrimination! We, the next generation, should not be discriminated against on the basis of our age for the simple reason that we are all equal, adults and children.

Why do adults discriminate against children the way they do? To try and find out, I asked one staff member at Lawton's Drug Store why children are not allowed to stay in the store for an extended period of time to look around. She responded, "We are afraid that children are stealing." I would like to know why we are thought to be stealing when we are just looking around in the store? We may also just want to wait for friends, but no, we can't do that. Not even in the front porch area of the store where there is nothing to steal.

Teenagers are always generalised into categories as soon as we are seen by adults. Why? I really don't know. With only a quick look from most adults, we are automatically seen as thieves and many other things. This is unfair because not all teenagers are like that. Yet again, I think about that dreadful brown sign. I ask all adults not to shop at these stores and to object the next time you see a child being treated like that. Remember it is a violation of the child's rights and it is discrimination. This discrimination must stop and the only way to stop it is to refuse to spend money at these stores. Without your money they can't stay in business. Remember that all humankind on earth were created equal, and teenagers shouldn't have to prove themselves innocent to adults, but rather adults should have to prove why they think teenagers are guilty.