The Free Speech Zone

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Knowledge is power- at any age

I’m taking a break from all the presidential election drama (Rice for V.P- really? Richardson as Judas- what!?) because a discussion happened today in my life that I find intriguing, and more than a little disturbing.

The back story: yesterday my kids and I were involved in a commercial shoot for the Obama in 30 seconds contest. It was suggested to me after the shoot (today) that perhaps their involvement was a kind of exploitation for the sake of politics. The kids, after all, had no idea what they were talking about when they were “supporting” Obama in the footage. I can see the validity of this point, though I disagree, at least in this instance, because the focus of the ad was not on the children but on the idea of family.
That aside, there was a further point made in the discussion that I find particularly relevant to my life and to the world at large: it was said that children ought not be exposed to politics and political “issues” until they are old enough to understand what it’s all about. The age for this understanding, according to this conversation, is somewhere around high school. Until then, kids should be allowed to be kids.

I fundamentally disagree with this position. First, because I don’t view political awareness as something only related to a candidate or to an election year. The world of politics is a big, big world and it encompasses government, taxes, candidates, social issues, wars, peace, globalization, and so many other things. Having a child be socially aware, be aware of the world around him/her is so important, not just when they are old enough to vote but when they are old enough to speak, to listen, to go out into the world and interact with others. Second, because, in my opinion, knowledge is power. Raising a child to be ignorant of issues and politics is not the way to raise the future generation to fix the problems we’ve created. It’s short-sighted and more than a little foolish.

There are other reasons I disagree with this position, other reasons I said that I could not in good conscience limit the amount that my children are exposed to politics. Reasons like how important my own personal convictions and activism are to me personally, like how important it is to me that my children be raised to think and to question and to speak out on the things that are important to them (and how else do we do this, except by modeling), like how essential I think it is for me and for my family to make some small dent in this world, to leave it in some way better than it already is (and, again, how else does this happen except through modeling?).

I wonder, if we as parents let our children be ignorant about the world, about issues and candidates and politics, if we keep our mouths shut about our own views and convictions, where do our children get their information? Recently, my ten year old came home and said that he’d heard at school that Democrats are baby killers. Should I have dismissed this and sent him on his way in ignorance? I don’t advocate brainwashing children into following blindly in their parents footsteps. I’ve strayed far enough from my parents to believe in the importance of free-thinking. And to be clear, I don’t care if my kids support the candidates I support, nor do I care if they grow up to be Republicans, as long as they do it with reason and conviction.

Knowledge is power. Not just mine. Not just for the other people who have it (i.e. the people in government positions). But for everyone who is willing to open their eyes and ears and minds to learn. My kids are part of that. And I have to wonder, am I really so odd to think this way? Am I setting them up to lose their childhood because they shot a commercial or because my ten year old thinks it’s great that an African American man is running for President or because that same child is against the Iraq War? Am I wrong to think that politics is not about an election cycle, to think that change is not about campaign promises, to think that social issues like equal rights and environmentalism are life issues that affect everyone no matter their age?

I don’t think I’m wrong. What about you?

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