It is a truism of life in America that government for the people can only be achieved through the people and by them. In other words, to have good government, one must participate. That participation can take many forms. Obviously, there are those who run for office. There are those who advocate for particular laws and policies. There are those who serve on advisory boards. Then there are the most important people: the ones who vote.
Earlier this week, the Pine Bluff City Council approved a measure to revive the Commission on Children and Youth. The resolution was sponsored by Alderman Steven Mays. Voicing her support, Alderman Irene Holcomb said that it would give young people a good opportunity to gain experience in the way government works.
As reported in the Commercial, the main goals of the commission will be for young people to help improve youth program offerings in the city and suggest improvements for crime prevention and reduction. The commission cannot actually pass laws, but serves in an advisory role to the mayor and city council.
The council set an age range for service to the commission as 16-25. Each of the eight aldermen and the mayor will appoint a member.
This stands as a really fine idea. Programs like this, along with much grander schemes, such as Boys and Girls State, give our youth an opportunity gain insight and experience with government. As we know, leaders aren’t born; they are cultivated.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
All of this is well and good, save for one small detail. Holcomb herself made the point when she remarked that the Youth Commission members would gain experience in the way government works.
Heaven help these young people if our local government serves as their definitive model. Rather, we liken that “opportunity” to the prison-based Scared Straight programs… lessons in what ought to be avoided.
In an era of almost weekly eruption or intrigue, we’re dubious as to whether this government is capable of providing an adequate model of how to run a city. One only need attend a city council meeting for compelling evidence. There’s a predictable raised voice exchange between Mayor Carl Redus, Jr. and Councilman Steven Mays. Then there are equally certain perturbations over unclear or inconsequential semantics. On top of all that, as of late we seem to be experiencing another rash of suspensions, investigations and apparent implosions in several city departments. To reiterate, we are in whole-hearted support of the Youth Commission as a general construct. We need to teach our future leaders how to lead. What we don’t need is to teach them how to yell at one another, how to drag things to a stop with uninformed inquiries, how to make important personnel decisions behind a veil or how to prioritize poorly.
Of course, Pine Bluff is hardly alone. It’s not as if this kind of program would find more profitable purchase in Gould or Helena. Then again, we’re not in Gould or Helena. We’re right here in the City of Progress.
We applaud the revival of the commission, but within that praise, we strongly admonish our city leaders to think deeply about the behavior they are modeling.