Hi ,
The social contract is the idea that people come to an implicit agreement with a society; they'll allow it to police and tax them, and in return, they expect a level of protection. The UK's social contract that was forged in the 20th century, which previous generations understood, was that most people would expect stable employment, could access safe housing, that education and healthcare would be available to them, and they could expect a general improvement to their quality of life – and if things went wrong, the state would step in.
Over the last four decades, this social contract has been steadily dismantled, asking more from individuals and offering less and less protection. For young people especially, these basic expectations of life are increasingly out of reach.
That's why we've been working with young people over the last six months to start understanding what people think the social contract is now: what they expect, what they feel they owe each other, their hopes and fears. As part of this, we recruited youth advocates from around the UK who began interviewing peers in their communities, building up a library of peoples' experiences in their own words.
What we found varied hugely; fears about a future with no NHS provision; determination to protect their friends and family from hate speech; suspicion of the government; concerns about weak or exclusive communities in cities. One thing that did come through overwhelmingly was a deep frustration over the feelings of powerlessness many of them felt in the world, UK society, or their own lives.
The UK's democratic systems are not keen on sharing power equally, and the effects of that run deep. As this project continues, we hope to start challenging that inequality, led by the youth advocates and the experiences they record. |
