0:00:02 > 0:00:03NEWS REPORT: In Hackney,
0:00:03 > 0:00:06the disturbances began in the early evening.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10- NEWS REPORT:- There are 16,000 police on standby in the capital tonight.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12- INTERVIEW:- I don't care.
0:00:12 > 0:00:16I've never seen such a disregard for human life.
0:00:16 > 0:00:18Quite a lot of the images we're likely
0:00:18 > 0:00:20to remember from the riots in the summer
0:00:20 > 0:00:23will be of young people out of control in the streets,
0:00:23 > 0:00:25walking off with looted property
0:00:25 > 0:00:28from shops, noisily confronting police and so on.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30It all feeds into the national habit
0:00:30 > 0:00:31of being suspicious and hostile
0:00:31 > 0:00:34when we see groups of youngsters on street corners,
0:00:34 > 0:00:36or outside shops and bus shelters.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38We walk a bit more quickly
0:00:38 > 0:00:43and hope we can pass without some sort of confrontation.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46The events of the summer were certainly horrific.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49They show us a face of our society we don't like to think about,
0:00:49 > 0:00:52angry, destructive, lawless.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55But it's crucial to remember what we saw on the streets in August
0:00:55 > 0:00:59is just one facet of a bigger and much more heartbreaking problem.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05The youngsters on the streets may have looked like a big crowd,
0:01:05 > 0:01:07but they are a minority of their generation.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10The minority whose way of dealing with their frustrations
0:01:10 > 0:01:14is by way of random destructiveness and irresponsibility.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17Most people of their age strongly share the feeling
0:01:17 > 0:01:19of dismay at this behaviour.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21REPORTER: What do think about what's happened?
0:01:21 > 0:01:23I've seen bad things. I don't approve of it.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27'I've come to visit the charity Kids Company, in London,
0:01:27 > 0:01:31'where today, a lot of young people are together to pack food parcels
0:01:31 > 0:01:33'for needy families in the neighbourhood.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36'When you have a chance of talking to young people like this,
0:01:36 > 0:01:39'you get a sense of how they feel about the society they're in
0:01:39 > 0:01:42'and the challenges they face.'
0:01:42 > 0:01:47I think there is a lot of stereotypes that follow us around.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49And sometimes it can be frustrating.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53And if they see you wearing a hoodie they think, "They're bad,
0:01:53 > 0:01:55"they're gang members."
0:01:55 > 0:01:58We're seen as the troublemakers that don't really want to do
0:01:58 > 0:02:01anything with ourselves, but in fact we really do.
0:02:01 > 0:02:07When you come from a background full of people who try to push you,
0:02:07 > 0:02:11like peer pressure of going into violence and gangs and stuff,
0:02:11 > 0:02:14it's easier to get away to a place where it's nothing about crime.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17It's trying to make a better life for someone.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19What we do see in the media is just a minority
0:02:19 > 0:02:23and because of that minority, it spoils it for the majority.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26They need see this to understand that us as young people,
0:02:26 > 0:02:29we're not all bad people, we can do things for people.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32I believe if you're young and fit, go out there and work,
0:02:32 > 0:02:35find your own way in life.
0:02:35 > 0:02:40There are people worse off than us, you get me?
0:02:40 > 0:02:43I just want to go into education, study, have a career
0:02:43 > 0:02:46and live a good life.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48We have to ask, what kind of society is it
0:02:48 > 0:02:51that lets down so many of its young people,
0:02:51 > 0:02:54that doesn't provide enough good role models and drives youngsters
0:02:54 > 0:02:56further into unhappiness and anxiety,
0:02:56 > 0:02:59by only showing them suspicion and negativity?
0:02:59 > 0:03:01When you see the gifts they can offer,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04the energy that can be released when they feel safe and loved,
0:03:04 > 0:03:07you see what a tragedy we so often allow to happen.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10'Look at the work done by groups like The Children's Society,
0:03:10 > 0:03:13'or the astonishing network of Kids Company here in London.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16'And you see what can be done to wake up that energy
0:03:16 > 0:03:18'and let it flourish for everyone's good.'
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Thank you very much, everyone! Well done!
0:03:21 > 0:03:22CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:03:22 > 0:03:26'One of the unique things in the Christian faith,'
0:03:26 > 0:03:29one of its great contributions to our moral vision,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32is the way it has spoken about children and young people.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Whether it's Jesus blessing children,
0:03:34 > 0:03:37or St Paul encouraging a young church leader, saying,
0:03:37 > 0:03:40"Don't let people look down on you because you're young."
0:03:40 > 0:03:42Or St Benedict in his rule for monks,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45saying that you need to attend to the youngest as well as the oldest.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48'Christian faith has underlined the essential importance
0:03:48 > 0:03:51'of giving young people the respect they deserve.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54'Of course they're not infallible and have a lot to learn.'
0:03:54 > 0:03:55So do we all.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58But being grown-up doesn't mean forgetting about the young.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02A good New Year's resolution might be to think what you can do locally
0:04:02 > 0:04:06to support facilities for young people, to support opportunities
0:04:06 > 0:04:10for counselling and learning and enjoyment in a safe environment.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12And above all, perhaps we should just be asking
0:04:12 > 0:04:16how we make friends with our younger fellow citizens,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18for the sake of our happiness as well as theirs.
0:04:18 > 0:04:23A very happy and blessed New Year to you all.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd