The youth is a manifestation of everything that modern-day politics needs i.e. energy, passion, firm opinions, and whatnot. If we, as right-wingers are to win this intellectual warfare we must slip into their shoes and see why they think the way that they do.
By now it comes to us as no surprise that the youth tends to be more attracted to the leftism. And why wouldn’t they? Pop culture is one of the biggest sources of their opinions and it just so happen to be owned by the leftists. A comedian will joke about how traditionalism has no place in this society and an edgy teen might find some truth in that. Some actress will rant about the human rights violation in Kashmir and a teenage girl who idolizes her will see it as upstanding. A movie will glorify the Mughal rule and a kid who knows little to no history will consider it as a factual reality. These things however are just part of the problem. The real issue stems from the youth’s perception of leftism itself.
The leftist ideology is the easy way out. It is something that if observed from a distance will seem virtuous by default. It is easy to say that all religions are the same, it is difficult to understand that some of them have done more harm than good and needs serious reforms. Anyone can claim the moral high ground by demanding a more egalitarian society but not everyone can see why it might be problematic. The keyboard warriors will claim intellectual superiority on by telling people that everything that the ancient Hindu civilization stood for: our culture, our values, our morals need to fade away for the development of this country, it is only after giving the issue a serious thought that we realize those elements are what makes our country unique.
A young adult brain is an empty slate. It is underdeveloped and lacks critical thinking. If the certain elements of the society constantly project an easy to understand and seemingly virtuous socio-political narrative that is what will be engraved in the minds of the youth. When they don’t have proper exposure to all sides of the story it doesn’t just shove political correctness down their throats, but it also becomes a barrier in free thinking.
The solution is not to “Saffronpill” them all together but to prevent further damage. The only way to prevent more innocent and malleable minds to be possessed by the Hinduphobic narrative is to expose them to the other side of the story. Hindus as a group can do lots of things but the most impactful will be our role as individuals.
Upbringing plays a vital role in shaping a child’s worldview. So parents, teach your child basic social and family values as stated in the Shastras, tell him what the beauty of Sanatan Dharma is. A few years later when that child enters the toxic world of twitter he will learn to question the claims of a liberal who can’t stop talking about Hindu terrorism. Everyone else, be open about your socio-political stance. Instead of calling your leftist teenage sibling/relative/friend ignorant, have a discussion, encourage critical thinking and give them proper exposure to the other side of the opinion that they’re not getting from social media, pop culture, and even the education system.
Instead of being bitter about how the majority of the youth is Left-leaning. We must play our respective parts and put the right-wing opinion out there. Even if the youth turns out to be Hinduphobic liberals they must be so because they chose to be one and not because they were misinformed or ignorant about the right-wing stance and Sanatan Dharma.
