Teenagers often get told what their parents think of them, but a local group wants parents to learn how the youth are perceived.

Club Resppec...t is inviting parents, grandparents, and guardians to listen to a panel of teenagers at Warwick Secondary School on August 26.

Curfews, divorce, trust, and double standards are to be among the topics discussed.

Mr. Cromwell Shakir, who started the club in January after his son Rajaee, now 17, was beaten up by other youths, said a Club Resppec...t member who recently graduated from Sandys Secondary School came up with the idea.

"He said that he loves his parents, but he feels that they don't understand him,'' Mr. Shakir said. "He wants his father to be given an opportunity to hear him and where he's coming from.

"He asked if we could have a forum to ask the parents: "How do your children perceive you?'' Mr. Shakir, a 43-year-old barber and father of two, said parents were encouraged to consider the question before attending the session, where the teen views would be articulated by a panel. Teens who attended were welcome to submit questions to be discussed.

With about 30 active members -- half adults and half youths -- Club Resppec...t acts as a resource group to aid the physical, social, economic, religious, psychological, and educational aspects of young people, mainly teenagers.

"We hope to help the frustrated child by providing the resources that can assist them,'' Mr. Shakir said.

His own family benefited from the type of experiment that would be tried community-wide on August 26, he said.

When his son and daughter were invited to speak openly "without repercussions, they were happy because they never had that opportunity. "Very seldom do we put our children on the other side.'' This month's forum followed a Unity Through Youth Fun Day that Club Resppec...t staged at Warwick Secondary School on July 24, Mr. Shakir said.

Despite rain, 60 to 80 youths turned out for a day that was "totally successful, from our point of view'', he said.

The day was spent playing basketball, soccer, and netball, while a "talk show'' style "reasoning session'' was held in the evening. Six young panelists discussed "the plight of our youth'', including topics like condoms in the schools and race relations, Mr. Shakir said.

The Fun Day was intended to bring together youths who belonged to organised clubs and "neighbourhood street youth'', he said.