Consumerism - Youth Workin' It

Youth Consumerism – Youth Work Session Plan Idea

March 21, 2013 By Shae Pepper Leave a Comment

Recently, Macklemore (and Ryan Lewis) has begun to make a name for himself (in the mainstream) in the US and UK with his song ‘Thrift Shop.’ I think we can all agree that song is “freaking” awesome! Besides being incredibly catchy and fun, it has a deeper message about consumerism.

Stephen then found Macklemore’s song ‘Same Love’ and we really started to appreciate his musicality, rhymes and messages. I started listening to his entire album, The Heist and found even more great songs.

One of my new favorites is Wing$ which has very powerful lyrics and music video. The main idea that I drew out from it (although like most of his songs it has multiple levels of morals and lessons) is that our consumer culture tells us we need things – in this case a certain type of shoes – to be someone or something of worth.

Macklemore himself said on his blog “The song “Wings” is about the pursuit of identity through the means of consumerism. The attempt is to dissect our infatuation and attachment to logos, labels, brands and the fleeting happiness that is intrinsically linked to the almighty power of the purchase. The subject I use in the song is shoes, but its aim is to paint a broader picture of being a consumer and tracing the lineage back to my first memory of retail infused desire.”

Here’s the video for Macklemore’s Wing$ – n.b. language warning – preview first (email subscribers click here to watch):

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis – Wings Lyrics

You can use this video and/or the song’s lyrics for multiple youth work session discussion ideas about youth consumerism. Here are a few to get you started:

1. Macklemore has said that the song is about his first experience of “retail infused desire”. What do you think this means?

2. What does this say about consumer culture and how it affects us and how we care for our things? Why do people buy knock-offs?

The box, the smell, the stuffin, the tread, in school
I was so cool
I knew that I couldn’t crease ‘em
My friends couldn’t afford ‘em
Four stripes on their Adidas

3. Why are logos so important? Some people cover the logos on their shirts with duct tape. Why do you think they do that? (Most say that they’re not a billboard or being paid to advertise for that company)

On the court I wasn’t the best, but my kicks were like the pros
Yo, I stick out my tongue so everyone could see that logo

4. Do you know anyone who has been hurt for their gear? What happened? Why would someone murder someone for shoes or a coat – is it really about those things?

And then my friend Carlos’ brother got murdered for his fours, whoa
See he just wanted a jump shot, but they wanted a Starter coat though
Didn’t wanna get caught, from Genesee Park to Othello
You’d get clowned for those Pro Wings

5. What are some things that teens you know stand in line for, spend their money on or take from others? Why are those items important? Macklemore thinks it’s about trying to fit in – why is it important for you to fit in but also to be individuals?

I was trying to fly without leaving the ground, cause I wanted to be like Mike, right
Wanted to be him
I wanted to be that guy, I wanted to touch the rim
I wanted to be cool, and I wanted to fit in
I wanted what he had, America, it begins

6. What kind of things are you consumed by? Why do you think it’s important to keep shoes in such pristine condition – like only wearing $300 shoes on Sunday so they don’t get worn or have the whites marked?

I’m an individual, yea, but I’m part of a movement
My movement told me be a consumer and I consumed it
They told me to just do it, I listened to what that swoosh said
Look at what that swoosh did
See it consumed my thoughts
Are you stupid, don’t crease ‘em, just leave ‘em in that box
Strangled by these laces, laces I can barely talk
That’s my air bubble and I’m lost, if it pops

7. Is it wrong to want things? Is a consumer culture a bad thing – why or why not? Do you agree that some items that we make into icons like shoes, electronics and clothes are ‘just another pair of shoes’ or are they more significant?

Consumption is in the veins
And now I see it’s just another pair of shoes

Questions: How would you use this video or song with your young people to explore youth consumerism? What discussion questions might you pull out from the lyrics?

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3 Activities To Encourage Youth To Want Less Stuff

November 29, 2012 By Shae Pepper Leave a Comment

Last year on Black Friday we encouraged you to help your youth consume less. Many young people want so much at Christmas time – new phones, new clothes, new shoes/boots, new tablets, new parents… OK that last one might be all year round and can’t really be helped, but you get the idea.

However, there are also a large number of young people around the world who won’t get anything for Christmas – it will be like any other day. Most youth want to matter and make a difference, so this time of year is a great opportunity to help bridge these two realities for youth.

This week’s session plan idea can work as one long session or as a few different sessions over the coming weeks leading up to Christmas. Here are 3 activities that will help encourage your young people to want less stuff, be grateful for what they have and to share with others.

Show Christmas Movies

There are a few great Christmas films out there beyond just ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’. Don’t be afraid to tap into their inner-child – we showed A Charlie Brown Christmas to our youth one year and it was a big hit.

Here are a few movie ideas that work well with this theme:

A Charlie Brown Christmas

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

St Nicholas – A Story Of Joyful Giving

Commit To Less Stuff

Have the youth complete their Christmas wish lists based on this little rhyme:

One thing I want
One thing I need
One thing to wear
One thing to read

Make a Difference to Others

Participate in a great holiday project over the coming weeks that will help others and tap into your youth’s inner giver.

Question: What activities would you organize to encourage youth to want less stuff? We’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below.

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Media Literacy Activities For Young People

August 9, 2012 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

Can your youth trust what they see on here?

“But Miss. Women like to be controlled by their men. It says so in that Mary J Blige song.”

This was an actual comment spoken to Shae at one of her groups this week. Ironically, it was while they were covering media literacy! We therefore thought that this week’s youth work session plan idea should provide some media literacy activities for young people.

What is media literacy?

Before you start running any of these activities, ask your young people “What is media literacy?” To help them define this, split the phrase into its two separate words and get them to define both “media” and “literacy”.

When defining media, get the youth to list all the different types of media they come across – music, TV, movies, newspapers, internet, magazines, billboards, adverts, video games, apps, etc.

Once they’ve defined what “literacy” is, get them to put the two definitions together so that they have a better understanding of the answer to “What is media literacy?”

Next, look at these different types of media and explore some of the messages that they communicate. Have the young people think critically about these messages:

Do they have some kind of bias?
What message are they sending?
Is their message true?
Why might this type of media not tell the truth about a situation?
Do you think they have any ulterior motives
Can you trust this type of media?

Media Literacy Activities – Music

There are all kinds of songs that you could use to explore media literacy. One example we thought might be useful is Poker Face by Lady Gaga, as you can use it to explore the issue of media literacy and sexuality due to the lyric:

And baby when it’s love if it’s not rough it isn’t fun

Ask your youth what message this lyric is sending about sex. Is it true? Go through the other questions listed above.

Media Literacy Activities – Internet

When Shae was doing a lesson on alcohol awareness this week, she told them that contrary to popular belief, alcohol doesn’t make you sleepy. One of the young people responded “That’s wrong – it does make you sleepy. Just check on the internet”.

Although we joke that “you can’t trust what’s on the internet”, to a large extent we do trust what’s on there. Here are a few ideas though of ways you can explore with your young people whether they can trust what’s on the internet:

Facebook status updates of friends
Twitter trends about celebrity deaths
Banner ads that say you’ve won a special prize
Blogs
Wikipedia

Media Literacy Activities – News

In theory, news can fall under all different types of media – internet, TV, newspapers, etc. – so this can be looked at from many different angles.

One suggestion for exploring this issue is using newspapers. Get copies of newspapers that provide a contrast to the political divide. For example, in the US you could use the Wall Street Journal for a right-wing outlook and the New York Time for a left-wing outlook. In the UK, you could use the Telegraph for right-wing and the Guardian for left-wing.

Find a story (preferably with a political slant) that’s reported in both newspapers. Have your young people identify what aspects of the story are the same in the papers and what aspects are different. Are opinions presented as facts? Is there emotive language used to make an argument to the readers?

To generate further conversation, ask your young people what killed Whitney Houston. Many of the early news reports stated that it was due to drug abuse, so this is what’s often believed. The coroner’s report though stated that although cocaine use was a contributing factor to her death, she died from accidental drowning. Ask your youth why news reports were so keen to suggest that her death was due to drug use rather than as an accident.

Media Literacy Activities – Advertising

There are so many examples that you could use with your youth, but here are a couple to get you started:

1) Nutella – There was recently a class action lawsuit against the makers of Nutella, as one of their adverts was deemed to have falsely given the impression that it was more healthy and nutritional than it actually is. I know, a chocolate spread with nuts in it isn’t healthy?! Here’s more about the story with a 2 & 1/2 minute video explaining what happened.

2) Smoking – Looking back, TV ads about smoking were ridiculous but at the time many people believed they were safe/had health benefits. Show the video below to your young people and see what they think about it. Can they think of any adverts nowadays that seem to espouse benefits that they think are untrue?

Media Literacy Activites – Movies

Again, there are all kinds of different movies that you could use to explore the messages that they send. Depending on the issues you’re working on with your young people though, this could be a good opportunity to address the issue of porn and how it affects their perception of sex and relationships.

Do they think porn movies accurately reflect relationships? If working with males, ask them if they think that women like to be treated the way that they are in porn.

Question: What media literacy activities would you run with young people? We’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments below.

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Create Youth Programs That Help Youth Consume Less

November 25, 2011 By Shae Pepper Leave a Comment

Today is ‘Black Friday’ in the US. The day after Thanksgiving when everyone lines up for hours to buy their Christmas gifts and take advantage of discounts and sales.

While there’s nothing wrong with any of these things, it does highlight the consumer society that most youth in more economically developed countries are growing up in.

How about in your youth programs? Are you helping your youth to identify changes they can make that will set them apart from their peers, and help them develop a less consumer-focused approach to their lives?

Here are a few little ways you can help your youth consume less during your youth programs.

Offer recycling bins for cans, bottles and paper
Give the youth a budget to plan an activity and teach them how to research getting the best prices and how to scale back their plans based on their budget
Have technology-limited sessions by creating activities and session plans that don’t need expensive devices to make them happen
Plan activities and sessions that focus on creating empathy in your youth by looking at the conditions of youth living in less-economically developed countries

Question: What other ideas do you have? Create a conversation in the comments below.

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