THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 6, 1995 TAG: 9504050189
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
SOURCE: JOHN PRUITT
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
For teenagers who complain that there's nothing to do in Suffolk, here's your chance.
For parents who fret that Suffolk's scarce recreational opportunities will cause their children to go astray, here's your chance.
For school and church leaders who think they can be part of the solution, here's your chance.
The occasion: a forum Thursday, sponsored by City Councilman Charles F. Brown.
Who knows? This could be the beginning of something great. By any measure, it's a step to involve people in planning for the future. And that's important - particularly considering that this target group is the future.
The city, or any other agency or individual, can plan all the activities it/he wants. But unless it has the buy-in of the target group, it'll fall as flat as a parking lot - which, in too many instances, is the prime meeting place of Suffolk youths.
Of course, the discussion could go far beyond recreation. Theme of the session, at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium of John F. Kennedy Middle School, is ``Improve Quality of Life for Youth.''
It's potentially a far-ranging topic, and it'll be interesting to see how far the participants take it. Councilman Brown is offering to listen to - and to take back to his fellow council members - the things on the minds of the city's future leaders.
Some issues come immediately to mind:
Just how equal are the opportunities for youth? We all know that civil rights legislation mandated equality on many levels, but we also must acknowledge that Suffolk has a population of haves and have-nots.
For those of us fortunate to be in the haves category, it's much easier to shrug our shoulders and say the opportunities are there for those who want them than to admit that access is not equal - sometimes by design.
The challenge for youth is determining how they'll work to blur the lines between Suffolk's haves and have-nots. Our generation has done poorly, but there is no reason for that pattern to continue.
Now, to take an opposite tack, how come so many youths act as if the world owes them something?
If belligerency were the key, a tremendous number of people now behind bars would have achieved great things. Somewhere along the line, youths have to learn that hard work generally has rewards. Dependency, on the other hand, only begets dependency.
It'll be interesting Thursday to see if youths who have been taught the benefits of independence and taking control of their lives can sway those who have allowed a chip to weigh down their shoulders.
Just what is it Suffolk lacks to improve the quality of life for its youth?
The likely response is more recreation. Really? Are we talking about more activities or more participation?
Is it really necessary for kids to crowd the Hardee's parking lot on Constance Road because they have nothing else to do, or is just a tradition that would flourish no matter?
And since young people are so starved for something to do, how come they didn't flock to the skating rink, which closed for lack of patronage; don't fill the one theater that opened recently; don't jump at after-school social events?
Partly, it's because Suffolk is so convenient to other areas. Kids love the seeing-and-being-seen attraction of shopping malls, and Suffolk is unlikely to have one anytime soon. In many cases, their parents head out of town for shopping and entertainment, and they follow along or follow suit.
Councilman Brown deserves plaudits for wanting to know what's on youths' minds. It shows that he cares for the future. Thursday, Suffolk youths have the chance to show just how strongly they share his concern.
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