YOUTH MONTH 2025: IT BEGINS AT HOME - INSTILLING RESPECT TO END VIOLENCE

As we celebrate Youth Month 2025, we are reminded that the true power to change our future starts at home. While we honour the courage and sacrifices of the 1976 youth, we must also reflect on the challenges our young people face today, particularly the silent battle against gender-based violence.

High rates of rape, including date rape and attempted rape, continue to tear at the fabric of our society. These acts of violence are not just physical crimes; they are rooted in broken values, distorted views of masculinity, and the dangerous belief that power justifies violation. Too often, the victims are young women at the hands of young men.

It is time we confront a difficult truth: we are failing to teach our boys and young men to see women as equals and to respect their bodies, choices, and humanity. This responsibility cannot rest solely on schools or the justice system—it must start in our homes. Families are the first teachers of values. Within our homes, boys and girls learn how to treat each other through what they are taught and observe.

We must teach our sons that no matter the situation—whether in a relationship, on a date, or in a moment of frustration —"no" means "no." A girlfriend is not property. A woman’s clothing is not consent. Her silence does not indicate agreement. She deserves the same respect and dignity they would offer their mothers or sisters.

We must raise our daughters to know their worth and never feel pressured to accept disrespect disguised as love. More importantly, we must raise boys and girls in an environment of mutual respect, fairness, and equality.

Respect begins with yourself. Before we can truly honour and protect women and children in our society, we must raise a generation that respects itself, valuing character over control, kindness over dominance, and dignity over ego.

Youth Month 2025 must be more than a commemoration; it must be transformative. Let it be the year we move from slogans to meaningful action. Let it be the year we declare: no more violence, no more silence. Let it be the year we rebuild the moral foundation of our society, starting in the living rooms and kitchens of our homes.

The youth we raise today are the men and women who will shape tomorrow. Let’s ensure they build a future grounded in respect, justice, and compassion—for themselves and one another.

ALDERMAN SCHALK VAN EEDEN

EXECUTIVE MAYOR OF LANGEBERG MUNICIPALITY