On International Youth Day, which is celebrated every August 12, the Council to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination of Mexico City (COPRED), pronounces itself in favor of the elimination of adult-centric prejudices, stereotypes and stigmas, and in favor of respect for youth as agents of social change.
Youth in Mexico represent 30% of the total population, that is, 37.8 million people according to the 2022 census of the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), however, various forms of violence and discrimination they face continue to persist. in daily life, which are triggered by the lack of specialized public policies for their care and guarantee of human rights.
According to the Law of the Mexican Youth Institute, young people are those who are between 18 and 29 years old, live in different conditions and contexts, however, in the social imaginary, they have been labeled and stigmatized as if they were a homogeneous population, that is, that all young people have had access to education, work, housing, a family environment and friends. But that does not happen with all young people in Mexico City, since many of them have not had access to education or employment, for example: many young people work in informal commerce, where their jobs are sometimes precarious, without decent working conditions and/or without benefits.
However, the discrimination that young people face is intersected by age, language, physical appearance, gender identity, sexual orientation, among other characteristics, and this increases the conditions of violence and inequality, it is In other words, young people are a priority attention group, which must be considered according to the following:
Young people are holders of rights and will have the protection of the law to participate in public life and in the planning and development of the City. The authorities will adopt measures to guarantee the full exercise of their rights, in particular to individual and collective identity, to the free development of their personality, to autonomy, independence and emancipation; to political, economic, social, environmental and cultural participation, and to education, decent work and housing. Due to the above, the diverse and heterogeneous nature of young people will be recognized, as well as their specific needs (Mexico City Constitution).
The guarantee of the rights of youth implies stopping seeing them as the “future”, that is, it is necessary to transform the culture where they are conceived as people subject to rights, with specific needs, and historical conditions of discrimination, looking at them from the present and from the place they occupy in the territory they inhabit.
Youth are effective as agents of social change because they propose innovative and creative solutions to social problems. His way of thinking rethinks previously used models to present more effective approaches to complex challenges; In addition, they are willing to invest time and effort in the causes they believe in, which can create powerful momentum for social change.
It is from public instances such as COPRED, which seeks to have a positive impact on youth agendas, from and for young people, from their struggles and recognizing their rights in all areas of Mexico City.
2023-08-12 22:22:04
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