A new Gallup poll said that “happiness” is taking a nosedive in the United States, adding the growing evidence that America has a mental health crisis. Shockingly, these dour findings include young adults, teens, and children — demographics who have generally enjoyed comparably positive outlooks and carefree lives as they face a lifetime of guarantees.
However, the data is serious: Suicide is ranked as the second leading cause of death amongst children ages 10-14, as well as young adults ages 20-34. Additionally, 55% of young adults under 30 are suffering from anxiety, with 47% being hopeless and/or depressed.
These statistics are unsurprising.
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of students who struggle with mental illness. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) have replaced traditional learning goals and curriculums from kindergarten through higher education.
The shift from traditional education goals and techniques to wokeism, along with the decline of traditional values, is stoking the mental health crisis among younger people, leading to an increase in depression, unhappiness, and anxiety. If we do not change our path soon, we will have lost this generation to despair and hopelessness.
Our educational system has moved far beyond nurturing skills needed for critical thinking and knowledge to the indoctrination and training of progressive activists through various DEI initiatives. One example is students consistently subjected to narratives focused on anti-American sentiments.
Over 4,500 schools across the U.S. have put in place components of the widely discredited “1619 Project” while framing America as a nation whose oppression is at its roots and fosters division.
The 1619 Project assigns victimhood and guilt to people based solely on ethnic and racial characteristics. This fuels discord, shame, and resentment, which leads to growing anxiety and depression. Instead of focusing on what is uniting us as Americans, malleable minds are pushed to observe each other with suspicion, creating a clique mentality.
While many countries are flooded with internal strife, like Rwanda and Afghanistan, the country’s success lies in the ability to unite our vast variety of people through our belief in — “out of many, one.” Our education system is imploding the vital principle of our nation’s success.
Officials in education also use rear-guard tactics when informing students about politicized topics like climate change. States have rapidly implemented regulations that climate change should be taught across all subjects and grade levels; however, the difficulty lies in how it is taught.
Climate change has been progressively framed as “climate justice,” with students taught humanity will die in a climate apocalypse they are partially responsible for.
Although prior generations were taught to view the future as endless opportunities, today’s youth are besieged by the gloom and doom of their own carbon footprint. Why wouldn’t they feel anxious and depressed?
Alarmism about the climate has substantially impacted young Americans’ mental health, with 75% expressing worry and concern about climate change and 67% saying they had climate fear.
A familiar cry from professors is that having children is selfish, further contributing to anxiety while hurting the familiar unit. This is shown in the fact that a minimal 23% of those under 30 believe having children is very important.
Research points to faith, marriage, and family as the overall wide-reaching components of a fulfilled life and human happiness. The family unit is the basis of support, purpose, love, and companionship unlike any other in the world. No social program or government can serve as a replacement. Children who are raised in stable families are more likely to succeed and flourish and far less likely to experience mental health issues.
If fear and division aren’t enough, woke educational narratives diminish purpose and self-worth, which are crucial to mental health, as schools frequently lower standards in the name of equity.
For example, the NYS Board of Regents redefined the students’ proficiency after they performed twice lower than the national average. The whole student body feels inadequate because education officials have little faith in their abilities.
Several studies demonstrate that higher expectations lead to outstanding outcomes. When students accomplish pre-set goals, it improves their mental well-being. When everyone is shoved through the system, it fuels the mediocrity cycle.
School is an experience that gives students a sense of purpose and direction in life, particularly in college. The number of U.S. citizens with college degrees has doubled — so why do 58% of young adults report they lack purpose in life and meaning, and 50% feel they have no sense of life direction?
This should indicate that something is drastically wrong with our educational system.
If we aim to address the struggles with the mental health of younger Americans, we must first recognize the woke ideological curriculum contributes to division, anxiety, and fear. Our students’ curricula must focus on knowledge — not indoctrination. It should be based on a comprehensive understanding of civics, critical thinking, and reasoning — the values and history of our nation. This will instill confidence and resilience in the minds of young people.
For far too long, our educational system has cultured a despairing environment. We must reclaim our educational institutions where young minds are nurtured and tended to, not brainwashed, and infuse the younger generation with optimism toward the future. This will undoubtedly strengthen the bonds that bring us together, inevitably alleviating the epidemic in mental health that is plaguing our youth.
