At age of 20, I became a licensed driver in California. I am far older than my friends and family members were when they got theirs. I wasn’t in a hurry. The social status of being a teen driver wasn’t appealing. It wasn’t a responsibility I wanted to for reasons I feel are overlooked by my peers. Even now, I’d rather sit as a passenger while someone else is driving.
Driving is a responsibility. Not just for you as the driver, but for other driving or pedestrians along the roads. With a license you’re supposed to understand this. It is a commitment to ensure your safety and that of your fellow humans. The driver who ran a red-light and t-boned my big brother when his turned green didn’t. It was in front of my grandparents’ home and caught on video. Fortunately, he wasn’t injured too badly. Unfortunately, that driver and too teens fail to embrace the required level of responsibility for what it truly is.
It is tough being a teen. You’re expected to be mature enough to always do the right thing but haven’t fully realized how. You’re considered a young adult. You want to experience adult things, can’t, but do them anyway. Social and peer pressure is no joke. The desire to be accepted by your peers is intense. It’ll make you overlook the maturity level you profess to have. Responsibility becomes an afterthought. Having just aged out of my teens, I know firsthand how difficult that can be.
It is way too common to see teens or anybody for that matter drive while distracted. I’ve seen people texting while driving. Eating with a spoon or fork with one or no hands on the wheel. Modern cars have screens you need to look at to change the music or adjust the A/C. They easily draw prolonged attention away from the road. I’ve got friends who even interact on social media with phones mounted to the dashboard. Distractions are everywhere and way too commonplace. They have always been apparent, but technological advances have created a lot more of them. By getting my license later, I feel fortunate to have realized the dangers these things and actions pose. Unfortunately, many of my peers don’t.
I’m the friend who will call you out. If you are texting, I’ll take your phone. If the music is too loud, I’ll turn it down. If you’re hungry or need to put on make-up, do it before or it will wait. I want to live and want you to, too. It is tough being a teen. You’re expected to be mature enough to do the right thing but haven’t realized how. And having just aged out of my teens, I know the difficulty and pressure of fitting in socially.
My dad told my brother and I about a film called Red Asphalt which was mandatory watching in his day. Curiosity took me to YouTube to watch it. It showed real accidents that hit hard! Growing up in the age of “The Fast and The Furious” where driving is cool and driving fast cooler, it’s easy to see why responsibility is overlooked or disregarded. Let’s bring back the kind of awareness and learning of old and to balance the fictional aspects. My generation is very visual. Technology today, especially in film making, is at a high level. Why not produce interactive short films to visualize real life driving situations. They would entail real life driving situations where viewers can choose choices and see the outcome of them, the good and the bad. It can be an effective tool, presented in a medium teens can relate to.
Today, with regard to how driving is depicted, the level of responsibility it entails is often an afterthought. This must change. Teen drivers are out there. They too must understand how important a role they play in society. We must bring back an element of teaching that instills the harsh realities that come with getting behind the wheel. Teens must learn to fully understand the level of responsibility required to fulfill their roles. To go alongside the existing curriculum of teaching laws and procedures, let’s introduce aspects focused on responsibility and the consequences of not embracing it. It will enable teens to learn up front what they’re taking on when driving a vehicle. Being cool, getting the privilege to drive, and being accepted socially should be stressed as mere benefits. The life of yourself and your fellow humans matter more.