Young People in the Pandemic: by Luca Warde, age 11

   There are a lot of underreported stories out there that need to be told about how young people have experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. Personal stories about the pandemic need to be heard and paid attention to so we can have a better understanding of what people have experienced. I completed three interviews about young people in the pandemic and it has been very interesting. These interviews have been great opportunities to meet people I never would have met and see what people think about the pandemic in other parts of the world. 

   Firstly, I interviewed a college student from Turkey named Sohib. He also seemed to know English pretty well. He said the pandemic really started affecting him after he finished high school so I could infer that he is probably a freshman. He said he was not that worried about the pandemic because he was taking the precautions. He is from Libya and he compared the two countries and thought that Turkey did a much better job controlling the virus than Libya. "Actually, I'm not going to lie to you. The Libyan government, it's not good like Turkey or United States or the other countries in the world, so they didn't have a powerful system for COVID-19," he said. He also said that you could get a test very easily in Turkey but it did cost a lot of money. "I didn't get a test before but here in Turkey it is so easy," said Sohib. An interesting part was when he said he did not want to get a vaccine for COVID-19 because he could just take all the precautions. It was a very engaging experience and it was really informative and fun. 

Sohib, pictured above.

Next, I interviewed two kids from Cameroon who were seven and nine years old and whose names were Ange and Rex. It seemed that there was a language barrier between us so it was a little difficult to understand them sometimes but I did hear a lot of what they said and it was very fascinating. "I am worried because schools have stopped. Jobs have been stopped. Churches have been stopped," Ange told me. They told me they liked to watch movies and play. They were also pretty worried about COVID-19 because a lot of people have died. They have been going to school in person with masks. A fun part of my interview was when they asked me some questions about the pandemic. At the end, they showed me their house and it had a beautiful view of Cameroon which I had never seen before. The interview was a great experience for me and for them. 

Ange, pictured above.

Rex, pictured above. 

Finally, I interviewed an eight year old child named Jun from Japan. He did not know a lot of English, so it was a little difficult interviewing him. Luckily, his mother was able to translate for him. He likes to read comic books and play Mario on his Nintendo Switch. He also said that his dad works from home. Jun is doing school in person with masks and has a backpack full of supplies. He seemed very prepared. I did not get many quotes from him because he was a little shy but I did get some good information about him and the pandemic. It was a great interview.

Jun, pictured above.

I have learned that Turkey, Cameroon, and Japan have had fewer COVID-19 cases than America. The people I interviewed seem to have been affected by the pandemic and have to take precautions such as wearing masks to school. I have also been affected by the pandemic, but unlike these kids, I have to attend school virtually because case numbers are higher where I live. This has been an astounding opportunity.