We young people have been devastated by COVID-19

It is no secret that COVID-19 has had a devastating impact. Young people have been especially crushed, since schools and youth programs were among the first places to close, and the last to reopen.

For our whole lives, young people have been told to look forward to certain experiences — prom, sports events, graduation, college — that we may now never get the chance to have. These are pivotal milestones. You are only a teen for so long, and then you never have the chance to be one again.

Young people have also had to deal with terrible mental health outcomes, social isolation, lost jobs, even lost parents, and heartbreaking pessimism as we realize that the adults we rely on have failed us.

Yet despite this disproportionate impact, young people have been sidelined in crucial conversations about the pandemic.

This dismissive attitude was on full display at the first presidential debate. When moderator Chris Wallace asked both candidates about opening schools, the candidates immediately pivoted to talking about the economy. They discussed schools for less than a minute, even though 55 million students have been affected by school closures.

Any discussions on schools are held as if those schools are devoid of students, as if the only opinions that matter are those of parents, teachers’ unions, school board and the governor. When adults do talk to students, it is to explain their decisions, not to solicit our advice.

Adults treat students like chess pieces to be pushed around. How long can we keep students on a Zoom call? How much homework can we give them? How many students can we shove into a classroom without causing a viral outbreak? They don’t consider that students are real people, whose eyes water when staring at a screen for too long, who have to hunch over their desks or makeshift workstations all day, who struggle to fit seven and a half hours of school, several hours of homework, exercise, extracurriculars, and eight hours of sleep into each day.

This exclusion of youth is not limited to school decisions. Skim through COVID-19 articles, and it is rare to find young people quoted. Peek into any government board room where decisions are made, and it is doubtful you will find any students.

It is no secret why. Most young people are short on money and most teenagers cannot vote. But youth voices matter. This pandemic has struck us at a pivotal moment in our lives, and we are paying close attention to society’s response. We have seen the inaction, the lies, the indifference.

Many young people have begun to take matters into their own hands, launching worldwide protest movements and speaking out. Adults face a choice: include us now or alienate us forever. We will be the ones to inherit this post-pandemic world, and we demand to be included in the conversation.

Tova Kaplan, Lincoln Park

The Fair Tax

We already have a fair tax system in Illinois. The less you make, the less you pay. The more you make, the more you pay. Those who succeed more than others should not be penalized for their success.

Mike Kirchberg, Little Italy