Teen talk; a look at what's on the minds of Bartlett's youth
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The reason for the open forum is to give area teens an outlet to discuss issues that they feel are important for their future and to give them an opportunity to speak freely about topics that they feel most adults do not realize they feel strongly about. Talking points range from the Bartlett Police Department to the war on terrorism.
The participants were assured their identities would be kept confidential and no subject was off limits.While they came from different backgrounds and had very different views on many topics, the one issue they did agree on was that they were getting a bad "rap" because of Bartlett High School's recent decline in graduating students and poor academic record and they wanted to set the record straight.
The first forum discussion was concerning the immediate community:
BE: What would you change about the city of Bartlett?
"The Bartlett police department honestly doesn't have a lot to do and there are too many of them for a city this size. They look for reasons to pull us over. Usually it is stupid stuff."
"There are too many traffic lights, every 15 feet down Stage Road is a red light."
"They are here to serve the people, there shouldn't be any changes to the police department."
BE: Are there any moral issues or is this just a traffic problem?
"No moral issues. They are all mostly good people, just doing their job. Just maybe a little over zealous sometimes."
"Bartlett is a really good community too, there are a lot of events to go to."
"Yeah, the seniors participated in the Christmas parade."
"Get back to the moral issues. Bartlett has got a fairly recognizable drug problem."
BE: You think Bartlett has a drug problem? Do you think your peers experiment with drugs a lot?
"It could be a problem, I don't know how many people will end up getting hooked on something."
"Not a lot, but I know some people who will try anything, but I know some people who would never try drugs."
"I don't buy pot, but if I am at a party and someone offers to smoke it with me, I will, that is the way it is with a lot of us. They don't look for drugs, but will use them if they are around other people who use them."
"There are kids as young as 11 getting caught with ecstasy. No one can say that is not a problem."
"I haven't tried drugs, and I don't want to."
"Every generation has a drug that stands out and the people will try it because it is new or different."
"Look at the sixties, that was crazy."
"It's a peer pressure thing. If everyone is drinking or smoking, you will want to try it too."
BE: How easy it to find and buy (drugs) in Bartlett?
"Everyone knows at least one person that has drugs. A lot of teens in Bartlett use pills."
"Oh gosh, I could make a phone call now and have anything here within an hour."
"The big drugs in Bartlett are Xanax and Lortab."
"I have only tried two drugs and that is pot and ecstasy. I didn't like it and I won't do it again."
BE: What is your estimate on how many of your peers do drugs?
"At least half."
"At least half have tried weed, but I don't think they do drugs all the time."
"I think maybe 20 percent are daily drug users, it is scary to see how many lives can be messed up."
"I think the number is higher, more like 70 percent have tried drugs and half use drugs regularly."
"I think it is something everyone might be tempted to try at one time or another, but I don't feel like a lot of our generation will continue to use drugs. I don't want my kids to ever try drugs, but I know they probably will."
Two of the teens felt that the Bartlett Police Department should concentrate more on drug use and spend more money and manpower educating kids in middle school, while the remaining five agreed that more money and manpower would be wasted and kids would try drugs anyway.
BE: Do you think this group is a fair representation of the male student body at Bartlett High School?
"Sure. Between the people in this group we know everyone in our classes."
"I don't know, we all have different interests, but we probably represent pretty well as a group."
"We have some jocks and some slackers and some academics here, so overall, it's a good group."
All seven agreed they felt they were a fair representation of the majority of male teens in Bartlett.
The war on terrorism and how September 11 changed the nation will be the subject featured in next installment of Teen Talk.
