Tag Archives: youth voices

AI Can Do the Dishes—But Leave the Writing to Us

By Emmy M.

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, once wrote on Reddit that we must not lose compassion behind computer screens. Yet his company has stolen art and writing from millions of people to power its software. This brings up the question: Is the use of AI ethical?

It’s not. But in an age of technological advancement, we’re forced to adapt to this new tool.

AI has become appealing because many use it as a shortcut—to get ahead. But Artificial Intelligence has its place, and it’s not in the arts or humanities.

“I want AI to do my laundry and dishes so that I can do art and writing—not for AI to do my art and writing so that I can do my laundry and dishes,”
wrote Joanna Maciejewska in an Instagram post, later quoted in an article on Medium.

AI can be amazing for organizational and computational tasks. It’s efficient and powerful. It’s a great tool. But the truth is—it’s not going away anytime soon, and we must approach it carefully.

To feed its database for ChatGPT, OpenAI claimed that if content was online, it was fair game—including pirated, paywalled, and private material.

This logic has justified the theft of work from millions of artists and writers, all without permission. AI platforms now allow access to their creations, often at the cost of their livelihoods.

In September 2023, the Author’s Guild filed a class action lawsuit against OpenAI for copyright infringement.

In its complaint, the Guild wrote:

“Defendants [at OpenAI] knew that their ‘training’ data included texts protected by copyright, but willfully proceeded without obtaining authorization.”

During the case, ChatGPT was prompted to generate an outline of Mary Bly’s novel This Duchess of Mine—a copyrighted work—which it did without permission.

Thankfully, the Author’s Guild won the case. But others haven’t been so fortunate.

Meta was also sued for copyright infringement by authors such as Richard Kadrey—and Meta won the case. That, along with another pivotal lawsuit involving AI company Anthropic, marked key legal wins for Big Tech in the AI space.

The consequences of using AI for the arts and humanities are clear: it threatens to destroy them. If it continues, these fields will no longer be profitable—and no longer human.

This new form of rampant digital theft could permanently reshape media and culture, wiping out opportunities for creators altogether.

As users of these tools, we have a moral obligation to protect artists, writers, and the humanities in our communities.

Vaped Out: How Nicotine and THC Are Hijacking Young Minds

By Jayden W.

On a bus ride to an educational event, I watched in disbelief as an elementary school student pulled out a nicotine pen. He couldn’t have been more than ten. Who gave it to him? Who failed to stop him? It was a sobering reminder that addiction often starts early, long before kids fully understand the risks.

More teens and young adults than ever are turning to nicotine and THC to cope with overwhelming emotions, not realizing how quickly a habit can spiral into addiction. According to a Truth Initiative survey from August 2021, 81% of young people aged 15 to 24 who vape say they started to reduce stress, anxiety, or depression. But studies show that nicotine abstinence worsens mental health issues, creating a cruel cycle of dependency.

What begins as a temporary escape frequently turns into a long-term battle with anxiety, depression, and dependency, hijacking not just young people’s minds but their futures. But the issue goes beyond use; it starts with access. So what do we do now?

For every 200 students in primary school, there should be at least 1 counselor. The need for counselors isn’t just for adolescents; college students need counselors as well. On a college campus, for every 400 students, there should be at least 1 counselor. According to a ASCA grant-funded research study, school-counselor-to-student ratios may be optimal at 1:250, but grade level and socioeconomic factors of a district require close consideration.

Government officials and school boards must allocate more funds toward hiring trained counselors to meet the needs of students. If school districts don’t have enough funds to hire these essential workers, they should partner with other organizations to help cultivate a student body that feels comfortable talking about their challenges.

Though I’ve never used nicotine or THC, I understand the dangerous pull. When life gets hard, we reach for what soothes us at the moment, even if it damages us later. For me, it was food. During a season of deep depression, I turned to overeating for comfort. A moment of joy would quickly turn into guilt, and the weight of my emotional pain would return even heavier. That experience taught me how easily a coping strategy can become a harmful cycle.

If addiction roots itself in childhood, it’s far more likely to persist into adulthood. And if we’re going to stop nicotine and THC from hijacking young minds, we must start by having the hard conversations. It’s now or never.

Resources:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5755398/

https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/colliding-crises-youth-mental-health-and-nicotine-use

Safe Spaces Make Healthy Disagreement Much Harder

By Anna G.

When I came to the Princeton Summer Journalism Program, the first thing I heard from counselors was that disagreements and arguments are encouraged, and that this is a “safe space” for arguing. I remember the sweet and reassuring tone with which my counselor said it. But I believe that “safe spaces” for disagreement are not possible in society.

Originally, the concept of “safe space” was created in queer communities to discuss the issues they shared, but in recent years it has spread across college campuses. Some people believe that safe spaces are necessary for people not to feel triggered by sensitive topics, but they also stop people from disagreeing. When someone voices a different opinion and is judged for it, then they feel outcast, like they can’t express their opinion.

“Safe spaces” are about maintaining an easygoing atmosphere among students, where they aren’t challenged. This comfortable bubble can prevent people from learning and adapting to life’s challenges, writes Liz Stillwaggon Swan, a professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder: “The fittest in the competition for survival are those that can adapt to face challenges and overcome them.”

A comfortable bubble doesn’t include outsiders’ opinions. When people are presented with a different opinion, they aren’t so likely to consider it. The avoidance of triggering topics makes this even more severe because instead of accepting challenges or respectfully debating the opinion, people will try to avoid and judge those who hold different opinions.

Some argue that “safe spaces” prevent harm. But think about the feeling of psychological pressure when everybody is looking at you with disagreement and judgment. This proves that even “safe spaces” may feel uncomfortable for sharing opinions. There is not really a “safe space” for arguments, as nobody can regulate people’s thoughts.

In our society, people rarely accept the fact of their wrongness, and they will judge those who have different opinions. But we can change this. By being less prideful and more accepting of other opinions, we can make our society closer to an ideal world, where understanding people are open to discussion and not judging others for their opinions.