Maggie Shuttlesworth remembers what it's like. An 18-year-old freshman at Penn State, and native of the small town of Williamstown, PA, Maggie deconstructs junior high and high school, and confirms our suspicion that the times are a changin'.
KnotMag: You've mentioned that the class of 2004 is producing a new breed of teenagers altogether, known to marketers as "tweens," or Generation Y. Teenagers have been soaking up pop culture for decades, so what makes these teens different? I saw a junior-high-aged girl riding a bike and talking on a cell phone today. What are some things you've noticed that brought you to this conclusion?
Maggie Shuttlesworth: My friend Darren and I often discuss the vast differences between our age group (18-19), and the classes that are in high school now. They [high schoolers] seem more reckless and are starting to drink alcohol, do drugs, and have sex earlier. My friends and I started to engage in these activities in 10th, 11th, and 12 grade. Now, it seems a great number of 7th, 8th, and 9th graders are doing these things; they don't seem to feel bad about it, either. I have noticed that what makes them different is that they expect it. They think they are entitled to it, and damn anyone that doesn't give them what they want. For us, it was more a matter of curiosity.
KM: Do you think that due to the way that advertisers pander to this age group is insulting? Do you think advertisers unfairly assume that teenagers will consume anything that looks like Hillary Duff or Justin Timberlake? Do they have the self-awareness to know that they're being targeted? In this vein, do you see any blatant myths about what it's like to be a teenager, or common misconceptions?
MS: I think it is incredibly insulting. These companies make their money by exploiting the youth of America. They capitalize on kids' insecurities and make them think that by wearing a certain pair of jeans or that by listening to manufactured garbage they are better than the kid who doesn't or can't afford it. It strips kids of their individuality and I just wonder how many artists, writers, and musicians we are losing by not allowing kids to be themselves and forcing them to conform to a mindset that was only put in place to make money. All the advertisers are doing is creating very vapid and apathetic human beings. You aren't developing depth when all you see are trash movies which produce trash sequels. You aren't learning empathy when you think it's ok to make fun of the kid who can't afford expensive designer jeans. I think some of them do have the self-awareness to know that they are being targeted, however there are an awful lot who buy into it, otherwise advertisers would have found a new target by now.
KM: Were the kids you went to high school and junior high with aware of current events? Did they pay attention to politics? And what, if any, influence does 9/11 have on these kids? Did they stay concerned?
MS: The kids I went to high school and junior high with were not that aware of current events. They definitely did not pay attention to politics, in fact, my cousin, who is a few years younger than me, was at my house during the State of The Union Address and said "He's on again? Ugh. I'm leaving." It's like they don't care -- if it's not entertaining they really do not want a part of it. It's a shame really, I've tried to have conversations with people about different political issues and generally they did not seem to care one way or the other. I will say that 9/11 had an influence; kids were really worried about it and confused. However, it was also easy to see their ignorance. I remember my world culture teacher getting mad because a lot of kids were coming up to him and asking him all kinds of questions. They had no concept of the troubles in the Middle East, some of them didn't even know what terrorists were, that's when my teacher decided to scrap all of his plans and spend a month on the Middle East. I think they still care now, but I have noticed they don't really think that it is their problem. They don't understand that they are going to inherit this mess some day.
KM: And where do you classify yourself? Do you relate more to the Gen X category (whether or not your year of birth places you in it or not) or to the Gen Y image? Why?
MS: I relate more to the Gen X category. It's probably why I can talk about people only a few years younger than me without restraint. I've always been the type of person to question things and test boundaries. I also have been called cynical and I really do not like to be controlled. I hung out in the "in" crowd, but I was friends with everyone. I was born in '84 and my sister was born in '87, she definitely has more of the Generation Y qualities. My parents always laugh at how different we are. I think what it boils down too is that I really do not like what I see in Generation Y. I do not like the shallowness of it all, I don't think that anything good can come from it, there is no substance or depth, it's just want and take.
KM: Now on to the nitty gritty. When you were in junior high and high school, how influential were drugs and/or alcohol on the lives of you and your friends? Did your schools ever have D.A.R.E types of programs? How long did it take before you realized that it wasn't going to work? At what age were they doing these things and how much (drugs, sex, drinking) were they doing?
MS: When I was in junior high, alcohol was a pretty big deal. However, drugs and alcohol weren't all that prevalent until probably the end of my sophomore year. I have noticed the past couple of years that the junior high kids are a lot worse. When I was in junior high, around '97-'98, we generally were afraid of the upperclassmen, but now they talk back and curse and carry on, they really do not care who they are talking too, be it a teacher or a older kid. Last year, my senior year of high school, I knew three 9th graders that were drug dealers, one of them even did heroin. I couldn't believe there was an actual demand for drugs in that age group. It just seemed completely backwards, 17-18 year-olds were going to the 14-15 year-olds to buy drugs, it was very strange.
Alcohol is also a big deal; there were more parties thrown by 14-15 year olds my senior year than by people my age. The health/gym teacher (how ironic) at my school has a daughter who is 15 and a son who is 17, and they used to always throw parties at their house. They live up the street from me and since they live in the woods, it is a prime party location. Their parents used to go to the Thousand Islands every weekend last summer on vacation. I remember going up there one night and some freshman had constructed a gravity bong. That's something you expect to see at a college party and here these 15-year-olds didn't only know how to use one, but they had actually made it. I also saw two 15-year-olds snorting Vicodin off the kitchen table and when that was all gone, they would use Tylenol and whatever else they could find. It was a very chilling experience, and that is when I realized something was really really, wrong within this age group.
Another thing that I noticed that really changed from the time I was in junior high was the issue of sex. Most of my friends lost their virginity in 11th or 12th grade, some of them are still virgins, however, it's different now -- I bet by the end of freshman year at least 70 percent of kids have had sex. I can say this because a kid in my class used to charge these 7th, 8th, and 9th grade couples 20 bucks for an hour in his car. My friend's 7th grade sister lost her virginity this way. It was such a sick business deal, but these kids had no trouble paying, simple supply and demand -- it's what they know after all.
We had "Red Ribbon Week" at school, where we were supposed to wear red ribbons to show that we were drug free. Most of the kids treated it as a joke. I mean, when the health teacher's kids are throwing parties and having their house treated like an opium den/brothel it's kind of hard to take it seriously.
KM: And in your opinion, how much do you think parents were aware of this? Do you think parents are powerless to stop or prevent these things or are parents just blissfully ignorant when their kid is in trouble or look the other way?
MS: I don't see how parents couldn't be aware of it. It's not hard to tell when your kid is hung over or they go on drives and come home with bloodshot eyes that there is something going on. I know the health teacher found the gravity bong on one occasion, and her daughter said who's it was and his parents were called, however a week later they went to the Thousand Islands again, and people still went to her house to party. From then on they just decided they would party Friday and Saturday night and then spend all of Sunday cleaning up. I don't think parents are powerless. I know a kid who when he was 14 would drink and smoke and his mom took away all of his material possessions...CDs, video games, and his four-wheeler. That made him behave real quick. The more you have, the more you seem to want, and that was a prime example of that.
KM: You confirmed that you think "The Times Are A Changin'." What makes you think something is changing? Is there really something different going on, or is this all things that have been happening forever? Every generation has had a reckless period (pot-smoking hippies, coke snorting in the 80s, the Ecstasy-popping ravers) and alcohol has been around forever. Why are these kids different?
MS: I said The Times Are A Changin' because America has not been the same since 9/11. We are at war, our soldiers are still dying, the economy is bad, and as I said, our president doesn't seem to have all the answers after all. These kids grew up in one of our country's most prosperous times, and because of that they haven't had to deal with hardship. Couple that with being catered to by the media and of course you are going to have the ingredients for self-indulged, spoiled, and reckless kids.
I think that there is something different going on because of the age group we are dealing with. I think it's normal for senior high kids and college students to experiment with drugs, alcohol, and sex. I have done it, most of my friends have. However, it's very dangerous for junior high kids to experiment with these elements because they have not yet formed their own identity, they do not know who they are and they are so impressionable at that age. It's hard enough for some adults to handle these issues, let alone teens whose emotional and mental maturity hasn't fully developed yet. I'm sure, in the long run, a lot of these kids are going to pay for experiencing things too fast and that is why it's important too talk about this issue and try to understand it.
