Understanding Teen Disrespect

When I was about 25 I got a job working at a wilderness camp for juvenile delinquents between the ages of 13 and 17. These kids already had disturbingly long rap sheets–battery, multiple court violations, truancy, theft, possession of narcotics, etc. Many of them had been sent to the camp involuntarily by a judge. After my first few days I remember trying to speak to one particular teenager about something. As I spoke he interrupted me over and over again with loud engine roaring sounds to drown out what I was trying to say. He looked me right in the eyes as he was doing it with a “what you gonna do about it?” look on his face. I was blown away by this level of disrespect.

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