Once upon a time in Bermuda, children were under the watchful eye of their entire circle of family and friends. Chances were if a child misbehaved in public, their parents knew about it before they got home. More often than not, some form of punishment was meted out.

But things have changed, haven’t they? As we have become more exposed to external influences through cable television, music, films and the internet, we came to turn a blind eye to bad behaviour.

Children today have access to and are influenced by all kinds of sexually explicit, violent and age-inappropriate content that would have been unimaginable a generation ago.

Children are growing up too fast. We all see antisocial or inappropriate behaviour, and we’re quick to condemn it, but we don’t do anything about it. Gang violence, sexually explicit videos being shared online and so on are evidence of this shift.

Some in the community may think this is not something their child is engaged in and therefore not their problem. But wayward youth are everyone’s problem. When they are fighting in the streets, being disrespectful to their elders and using offensive language in public places, it is everyone’s problem.

I felt I had to write about this issue after recently watching a PG-13 movie that I thought contained R-rated content. The characters in the movie, supposedly role models for our youth, were portrayed as cursing, disrespectful gunslinging hoodlums.

The message our impressionable youth will receive is that it’s OK to make fun of minorities, swear and to make a joke out of shooting people. I was shocked. When our children are exposed to this kind of behaviour, whether in movies, music and even some cartoons, they must be more likely to act out what they have seen and heard. As parents and members of the community, we have to take a more active role in raising our children.

So what does parental responsibility actually mean? It means making sure our children are not watching inappropriate movies and television shows or listening to adult music containing profanity and sexually explicit references. It means monitoring their internet usage and applying parental filters and blocks online, and on the TV.

Parents should be “friends” with their children on Facebook and other social media, and monitor what they post and share. It means knowing who their friends are, where they are hanging out and what they are getting up to. It also means setting boundaries and curfews, and enforcing them.

Parental responsibility means making sure your child gets to school on time, dressed correctly and with homework done. It means going to PTA meetings and knowing what is going on in your child’s school. It is difficult for parents continuously to monitor what their child is exposed to and to know what they are doing all the time.

But if a child knows a parent is watching, and there are consequences for breaking the rules, they may think twice about doing something that could land them in trouble.

Parental responsibility also means being a parent — the person in charge. Too often children are the ones calling the shots: being disrespectful and ignoring the rules. It gives them the feeling that they can do whatever they please, whenever they please. If a child is not following and respecting your rules, it means punishing them.

The Government is doing its part to counter the negative influences bombarding our children daily. Hundreds of middle school students have taken part in the Gang Resistance, Education and Training programme. And more than $400,000 has been distributed to social clubs with youth programmes through Cash Back for Communities.

But the Government can do only so much to instil respect and good behaviour in our children. We cannot continue to bury our heads in the sand and ignore that some of our children are at risk.

We need to strengthen our resolve as a community to steer them away from a life of antisocial behaviour, crime and possible incarceration. In short, it will take everyone in our Bermuda village to raise our children.

• Nandi Outerbridge is the Junior Minister of Community, Culture and Sport and the MP for St George’s West (Constituency 2)