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The American society is a diseased hell-hole. Every single one of us at this school has become infected with the same illness. The disease: screen addiction. Ever since the birth of smartphones, this epidemic has spread like a cancer poisoning the minds of everyone it comes into contact with. But there is one demographic it has affected more than anyone else.

Our youth.

We will never build a brighter future if we continue to treat our youth as if they are objects. We drill into their still developing brains that they have to get straight A’s, act a certain way and be someone else in order to make it in today’s society. But why be a part of a society that degrades students and treat them like malfunctioning robots? We make it really easy for teens to retreat to social media and video games. It’s no ones fault but the generation before them.

Teens are living their lives distracted. Whether they know it or not, teens are shutting themselves out from the world around them. Which in turn, causes them to feel even more neglected than they already did. For people with an actual mental illness, this societal landscape is a breeding ground for issues.  

Within the first two months of 2018, there have been 18 school shootings. This disgustingly gruesome statistic alone serves as proof as to how backwards our society really is right now. Despite the recent tragedies the country has faced, they have brought certain issues to the forefront of conversation. There are many problems that we as a nation have to address. Screen addiction is most certainly one of the most important.

Technology is both a blessing and a curse. Due to the rise of technology the world has swiftly become the most connected it has ever been, which coincidentally has caused it to become the most disconnected it has ever been. The digital age has had an overall negative impact on our youth. Due to how “connected” we have become, we are no longer spending any time with our friends and family.

The Washington Post reports that teens spend nearly nine hours a day consuming media. That’s just about one third of their day that they are not engaging in a meaningful conversation; that’s not even counting sleep which teens usually get about eight and half hours of. This addiction is not at all limited to teenager either, people of all ages suffer from this same illness. I firmly believe that if social media were not to exist, the country would be a much happier place to live in.

Social media truly is an addiction. So much so that writing this paper had turned into a major struggle. I found myself frequently checking my phone just to see if anyone was trying to get a hold of me. Writing this paper really helped me realize how addicted even I was. I implore you all to try and go a day without your phone.

A day without social media.