The Language of Youth Discrimination

Youth Discrimination Terms

American society relies on youth discrimination. Everyday millions of adults are employed in jobs that rely on youth discrimination, while a greater number actively requires youth discrimination in order to exist. Teachers, police officers, social workers, and store owners are among those who benefit - but they aren't the only ones.

Decisions are made everyday in every community across the country without young people. That's not always bad, largely because there are decisions that no child or youth would ever want to be involved in. But its not enough to simply take those decisions away from young people; instead, young people should have the ability to choose not to be involved, just like adults do.

It’s a question of democracy and equity. As researchers are increasingly illustrating, it is not a question of ability. All people develop at different rates and are capable of different skills at different ages, largely making the age-based laws, rules and guidelines that define democratic participation in the United States.

In order to actually do something to challenge this discrimination, young people and adults need to learn the language of youth discrimination. Following are terms I have defined by working with hundreds of child, youth and adult participants in dozens of Freechild Project
workshops over the last year.

Please send your suggestions, reflections or criticisms to info@freechild.org.

Terms for Youth Discrimination in Society

Adultcentrism is the practice of regarding adult, including their opinions, interests and actions, above young peoples' opinions, interests and action.

Adultization is the elimination of childhood and adolescence by schools, marketers and parents in order to promote order and eliminate the "inconvenience" of youth.

Adultism is the practice of favoring adults before young people. This happens every where, all of the time: Schools, lawmaking, movies and music all reflect adults' interests and perceptions. Even young people can unconsciously share adults' perceptions of young people.

Adultocracy is the collection of obvious and unobvious tools adults use to impose their authority, domination and superiority over children and youth.

Commercialism is the manufacturing and distribution of objects and traits that were formerly free to young people, particularly in the forms of education and culture.

Consumerism is the process of identifying, training and transforming young people into complacent consumers rather than dissatisfied
citizens.

Criminalization is the formal and informal process that makes young people or their specific actions illegal, particularly when young people or their actions were legal in the past.

Demonization is a process for making young people evil in order to justify attacking them in the forms of character assassination, legal action and to get rid of their civil liberties.

Discrimination happens whenever someone makes a decision that does not include other people. Everyone discriminates all the time, and that is not always bad.

Ephebiphobia is the fear of youth.

Gerontocracy happens when older people control an institution or government at the expense of all other age groups in society.

Gerontophobia is the fear of older people.

Infantalization happens whenever a person is made unable or assumed to be incapable of something because of their age, presumed development, or education.

Juenism is the favoring of children and youth over adults.

Manipulation occurs when adults exert influence over young people in order to gain for themselves.

Neoliberalism is the process of making private formerly public entities in order to introduce market values to young people at the expense of collective benefit.

Paternalism describes the notion that by "protecting" children and youth, adults are preventing young people from harming themselves.

Pediaphobia is the fear of children.

Tokenism happens whenever young people are included in order to make it appear that young people are participating; occurs exclusive of meaningful participation.

Learning the language is the first step to stopping discrimination against youth. Learn more throughout The Freechild Project website!

Our Resources

"Understanding Adultism" at www.freechild.org/bell.htm.
Youth liberation at www.freechild.org/SNAYR/liberation.htm.
Survey of North American Youth Rights at www.freechild.org/SNAYR/
Webpage for adults at www.freechild.org/adults.htm.
Our blog entries at www.youngerworld.org

The Freechild Project

Survey of North American Youth Rights, or SNAYR,

is brought to you in partnership with the National Youth Rights Association

For more information visit the Youth Rights Network

Return to the SNAYR homepage