We Don't Have to Choose Between Keeping Kids Safe and Keeping Opportunity Within Reach

Op-ed

We Don't Have to Choose Between Keeping Kids Safe and Keeping Opportunity Within Reach

By Torrey L. Barrett, CEO, KLEO (Keep Loving Each Other)

As a father, an uncle, and someone who has spent more than two decades working to improve opportunities for young people in Chicago, I know how much families worry about keeping children safe online. I also know that today's young people live in a digital world, and our responsibility is to make that world safer—not to shut them out of it.

Every day at KLEO, we work with young people who deserve every opportunity to succeed.

Some come to us through our after-school programs. Others earn their first paycheck through youth employment. Many discover new career pathways through workforce development, STEM education, arts programming, or mentorship. Some simply need a safe place where they know someone believes in them. Our mission is simple: eradicate violence by bringing opportunity to those who need it most. We believe every young person deserves to feel safe, loved, and equipped to thrive.

For many of the young people we serve, technology is more than entertainment. Our staff see young people use it to apply for jobs, secure summer employment, access educational resources, communicate with mentors and case managers, participate in workforce development and STEM opportunities, receive behavioral health and supportive services, discover scholarships, and explore career pathways that encourage them to dream beyond the boundaries of their neighborhoods.

Like any tool, those platforms come with real risks. At the same time, our staff regularly witness technology serving as a bridge to opportunity, helping young people connect with employers, educational programs, mentors, and supportive services that can positively change the trajectory of their lives. At KLEO, we see firsthand how online exploitation, bullying, and harmful content can negatively affect young people. We also know that shutting the door completely isn't the answer.

When lawmakers talk about making social media safer for children, I pay close attention because the families we serve deserve solutions that actually work—not policies that create new problems.

Banning teenagers from social media outright, covering every platform with warning labels, or creating systems that make parents repeatedly verify their child's identity for every single app won't make young people safer. Instead, those approaches create unnecessary hurdles for busy

families while requiring personal information to be shared across countless companies, increasing privacy risks and creating more opportunities for data breaches.

Parents deserve something simpler.

Fortunately, the answer already exists.

The app store is where families already manage their children's devices. It's the logical place to verify a user's age one time and allow parents to approve or deny app downloads through a single, secure process. Instead of forcing families to repeatedly submit sensitive information to every individual platform, parents can maintain control through one trusted gateway.

That is why I support the App Store Accountability Act.

Unlike weaker proposals currently being discussed in Washington, this legislation requires app stores to actually verify a user's age and obtain verifiable parental consent before minors download apps. It replaces honor-system age checks—where children can simply enter a different birthday—with real verification while protecting families' privacy.

That distinction matters.

As both a parent and a community leader, I know that effective safeguards require accountability. We would never allow a convenience store to ask a teenager, "Are you old enough?" and simply accept whatever answer they typed into a screen before selling an age-restricted product. We require identification because the responsibility belongs with the gatekeeper.

The digital marketplace should operate the same way.

At KLEO, we don't believe protecting children means limiting their potential. Our youth participate in programs that expose them to careers they never imagined, connect them with caring adults, and help them build confidence for the future. Increasingly, technology helps extend those opportunities beyond our walls. We've seen young people use digital platforms to complete employment applications, stay connected with mentors and supportive service providers, access virtual behavioral health resources, participate in STEM and workforce development opportunities, and continue learning long after our programs end. We want young people to continue accessing educational resources, positive communities, and life-changing information online—but with parents empowered to make informed decisions every step of the way.

Protecting children and preserving opportunity are not competing goals.

Illinois has long been a leader in standing up for children and families. Now Congress has an opportunity to establish a consistent national standard that protects every family, regardless of where they live.

As policymakers continue debating online safety, I urge Illinois' congressional delegation to support the App Store Accountability Act. Parents deserve a system that is secure, simple, and effective. Young people deserve access to the opportunities that technology can provide while remaining protected from its risks.

At KLEO, we often say that love is our strategy and healing is our purpose. As a father, an uncle, and someone who has dedicated his career to investing in Chicago's youth, I believe we can protect children online without closing doors to opportunity.

We don't have to choose between safety and opportunity. We can—and should—deliver both.

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