Teenagers should be allowed to make mistakes

Posted at 12pm UK time

As a society, we used to understand that young men did and said stupid, dangerous and indecorous things. Not anymore, it seems. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has suspended Ollie Robinson, the Sussex and (briefly) England cricketer, for racist and sexist Tweets he wrote as a teenager – before he had even signed his first professional contract to play cricket.

The Tweets were low-grade versions of the sort of thing one might hear at a bawdy stand-up show, and were definitely racist and sexist. However, it is highly unlikely Mr Robinson is either racist or sexist.

Young men say such things in their cack-handed, fumbling efforts to be bold, edgy and rebellious, not because they are bigots. It is part of the impulse to test the boundaries of society, stand out from the crowd, and one-up their mates – a process they undertake with no experience, little savvy and undeveloped impulse control.

This is also what gets them into fistfights over trifling issues. Why they pepper their language with swear words, take up extreme political causes, argue incessantly with their parents, and generally rail against authority. It is one reason they drink far too much, dress outrageously, and engage in risky sexual behaviour.

All this conduct is unacceptable, but society used to roll its collective eyes, dish out a proportional chastisement, and say, ‘You’ll learn.’ Now, we seek to ruin forever their means of earning money and success.