A Youth Voice

The Messenger asked a local youth worker to speak to a young person anonymously.

“Everybody is talking about gun and knife crime. A lot has been set up to work with us young people to move us off the streets. The ones that need working with are not even touched. It’s ok for all these organisations to get money in our name but they are not really doing anything.”

“How many stabbings or shootings do you think go unrecorded? The youth don’t wanna work with these groups that are involved with the police, it’s too dangerous. I wish I could give u guys the reasons why all this has kicked off but you’re not blind. You see it and hear it and u know exactly what’s happening. It involves money, drugs and more importantly reputation. It’s about the young guys and girls making a name for themselves. Making a mark so they can make money. There is nothing else out there for them. There is nothing in the community because that is targeted at the easy kids, ones they can work with. Schools get rid of them or just pass them on without realising that they could be putting them in an area that is a no go for them, so they just don’t go.”

“The one thing that confuses me as a young person is that when u talk to young people to look at their needs, r u talking too? Who r u askin? Cos nobody has ever been to see me or the youths I know. Start facing reality, this is gonna get worse and a lot of young people out there like myself r scared. Show us a way out and we will take it with both hands. But don’t come with false promises and the police standing behind u because that’s when u lose us. We are not bad people, we r just stuck in a bad cycle and can’t find the exit.”