The Loss of Innocence in Today’s Youth

When you think of a child, thoughts of innocence are probably what come to mind, because that’s what we associate with childhood. We often ally naviaty with children, as they lack exposure to the world. But, what would you think if a child stuck his tongue out and flipped you off? Probably wouldn’t remind you of innocence. I have had a poster portraying this image in my room for three years now. I hung it up out of humor, but really what the poster represents is the lack of innocence within our youth of today’s society. Children in America are losing their purity due to the corruptness in our world. With the impact of social media, adolescents are being exposed to profanity through gun violence, racism, and other severe issues. In this speech, I am going to explore society’s influence on our children by examining Erik Ravelo’s artwork called The Untouchables. Through his work, Ravelo used Ethos, Kairos, and commonplaces to make the audience feel the discomfort children do within society. With the images he creates, viewers can understand the pain children have suffered due to society’s influence.

The work of The Untouchables addresses pedophilia in the Vatican, sexual child abuse and tourism in Thailand, war in Syria, the trafficking of children’s organs on the black market, the death of children by guns in the U.S., the threat of nuclear war and obesity fueled by big fast food companies. With the use of shocking images of a corrupted adult barring the corpse of a child, Ravelo asks civilians to pay attention to the demoralization of our youth, just as the poster in my room. Both of these works draw attention to the lack of purity our children face today through societies impact.

Erik Ravelo started a conversation about where our youth is headed with his work of The Untouchables. Through images of adolescents being “crucified” on the source of their corruption, Ethos was used to provoke the idea of ignorance. Most people neglect the fact that our society strips our youth of purity, as social issues of sexual child abuse, gun violence, molestation or the threat of nuclear war tend to go over our heads. With each scene portrayed through The Untouchables, a different story is told about the loss of innocence. This direct analogy of childhood innocence crucified on the desperate ignorance of their damaged elders evokes a national sentiment of the neglection of our youth. With this human installation of issues plaguing children around the world, Ravelo addresses the fact that “the right to childhood should be protected,” as he stated in his artist statement. 

Along with Ethos, Ravelo uses Kairos to deepen understanding of these social issues. First showcased in 2011, prominent issues of gun violence, pedophelia, war, and obesity existed within the youth. With this project of The Untouchables, a lot of buzz was circulated around the images, as the human sculptures were photographed with the child’s face blurred out, resulting in illustrations that were visually and conceptually saddening. With the attention the project received, the more hate was delivered towards the art piece, as Facebook censored the images portrayed by Ravelo. With this censorship, it made it more difficult for Ravelo to promote his work, as they banned him from uploading more photos. The response to Ravelo’s work from society proves the ignorance that society possess on these subjects, as they neglect to accept that these profantities are a product of civilization. Because of the timing and the rhetorical situation, Ravelo was able to create a reaction from the targeted audience, whether it was good or bad; Yet, to this day, his artwork is even more relevant, as through reoccuring art shows, Ravelo challenges our society’s impact on childhood. 

Commonplaces have a great presence within this project. With the usage of the crucifix, Ravelo covers the symbol with a layer of meaning: criminals were crucified, but Jesus was not a criminal. He sacrificed his life for the survival and growth of others. With this commonplace, Ravelo challenges the fact that those who are replacing the cross are evil, as they bare the innocence of our children. As a society, we sacrifice our youth for the growth of this evil, as we have not banned firearms, we support fast food businesses that result in obesity, ect. Ravelo’s usage of the Crucifix as the commonplace provides an instant connection for many cultures, as he states Jesus on the Cross cannot be claimed by any specific group, but by many: “The religious icon is not someone else’s religious icon. It’s my icon too, it’s my culture, it’s my education, it’s the way I was taught to communicate.” 

Erik Ravelo creates a proactive project in order to exemplify the corruption within youth. With the issues he addressed, Ethos was used to show how society is ignorant to the things that children can be exposed to. The reaction that society gave to Ravelo’s works proved this ignorance through Kairos, as the timing of the release provokes citizens to take action to ban the images. Lastly, the commonplace of the cross used the image of Jesus’ sacrifice to relate to society’s sacrifice: our children. I think the usage of these rhetorical strategies worked well for Ravelo, as he calls us to perform our civic duties, and improve our society or out youth.