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Seven years after playing his last NFL game, former Kansas City Chiefs Star Derrick Johnson turns his attention to educate the Youth of America.
Johnson, who published his first children’s book on Thursday, felt compelled to participate in the efforts to encourage children to stand up for themselves against bullies after witnessing a negative impact on American adolescents in recent years.
He accuses the “devil” of this influence.
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Kansas City Chiefs inside Linebacker Derrick Johnson during a game against San Diego Chargers November 22, 2015 in San Diego. (Tom Hauck/Getty Images)
“The enemy really loves to get our kids in a corner to say, ‘Hi, tell nobody about nothing about nothing, just internalize it,'” Johnson told Pakinomist Digital. “The enemy is the devil. I am a great faith in Jesus Christ, and the enemy is always at work, especially for children who have potential.
“And if children do not have mentors around them, the enemy can sometimes manipulate them and make things seem more than what it is, and make it seem like they don’t have a way out. And that’s when you get into the kids who really isolate themselves.”
Johnson urged parents to instill the teachings of Jesus Christ in their children to help counter these “harmful” elements.
“If you are a child of God, no one can dampen that light. So you were bought at a high price by the blood of Jesus Christ, so it allows you to be here,” Johnson said of the effect of Christianity on custody. “Being able to have this identity in Christ is everything. It allows them to stay grounded, not that life will be perfect if you got a church … but at least you have the right tools to make things happen.”
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Johnson quoted modern digital devices as a channel for how this negative influence has been imposed on children and prevented them from speaking up and pushing back to “harmful” forces in their lives.
“The digital devices make us less Nacn,” Johnson said. “Kids come on these iPhones and you never know what they are seeing there. And they don’t even have to intentionally do it, it’s just an attention… now there’s cyber bullying, there are a lot of different ways you can bully someone and really kill their confidence through social media and what not.”
As the son of a veteran teacher, the former linebacker also pointed to a fall in the quality of public education in America.
“It’s getting worse. And that’s why I’m in this match,” Johnson said of American public education. “My mother is a teacher for over 40 years, I know what it means to earn the youth at a high level … and many times they just need more help and more resources so they can really push for the mission.
Kansas City Chiefs inside Linebacker Derrick Johnson before a game against Jacksonville Jaguars November 6, 2016 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. (Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire)
“Public schools are quiet.
Johnson does his part to try to contribute his experience to American education with his new book “Super DJ Saves Field Day.” Johnson said he is already planning to write successors and create a series.
