Without Helping The Youth Of Chicago Society As A Whole Will Suffer

By Amy Meyer


There used to be a time when communities were close. People cared for each other and everyone was expected to take part in community affairs and activities. Those days are gone, unfortunately and people now seem to care only about themselves. So many people live lonely lives amid crowds of people and it is especially young people that suffer from the lack of a true community spirit. Thankfully, there are organizations that offer programs aiming at helping the youth of Chicago.

One of the reasons why there are so many youngsters that need help is that so many families are dysfunctional. Children grow up in single parent households where there is not time mutual nurturing caring and joint activities. Subsequently, many youngsters are left to their own devices and they are in great danger of being exposed to dangerous influences. There are always predators looking for youngsters that crave attention.

Unemployment is at an all time high and this has a profound effect upon young people. Many of them drop out of school prematurely because they have no hope of ever finding work. Thus they render themselves unemployable because they have no skills to offer to potential employers. There are many organizations that have seen this need and that offer skills training to youngsters.

Young people often act tough but they are very vulnerable. When they have no support system and when they have no direction or love, they easily become victims of psychological conditions such as depression, feelings of worthlessness, anxiety and other debilitating feelings. That is why some organizations reach out with counseling to help such youngsters to start believing in themselves and to regain confidence in life.

Substance abuse among young people has become a major problem. Youngsters take drugs or alcohol to forget about their problems and to have a good time. They almost always fall into the truly horrible trap of addiction. Some helper organizations offer programs that will assist addicted young people, but it is unfortunately very difficult to convince them that they need such help and successes are few.

One of the main problems experienced by well meaning organizations aiming to help young people is the fact that it is so difficult to reach them. This is often because so many of them are homeless and so they drift from place to place. That is why some organizations have set up places of safety where young people can sleep and get a decent meal. Such places allow other organizations to reach them.

The sad fact is that very few young people in desperate need can be reached and helped. There are just too few resources. Too few people volunteer their services, offer donations or become involved. Many organizations trying to help young people are continually short of everything. This means that only a fraction of those in desperate need can be reached and assisted.

If youngsters in trouble are left in the lurch then society has failed them. This failure will come back to haunt them in times to come. More needs to be done to create structures and to allocate resources to help young people in trouble to cope with life and to find purpose in their own lives.




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