Speaking at a United States Public Affairs discussion last week, Ray said it was sad to note that some politicians had created artificial divisions among the people, which was working against the development of local areas.
“Talk of the born-frees and the born-before. It’s these divisions that keep people apart,” he said.
Ray said Zimbabwean youths had the challenge of overcoming the artificial divisions and work towards the development of the country through building trust and economic security.
“Young people can and should take an active role in the development of their country and communities,” he said.
“In the last three years that I have been here, I have noticed that politics dominates almost every conversation. I know political decisions can affect your lives but it’s really the day-to-day activities you make that affect your lives.”
The US envoy added that it was important for the youths to put politics in its rightful place and ensure it does not distract them from pursuing projects beneficial to the country and their communities.
“I am not saying you should ignore politics, but put politics in its proper place. You should use your energy in building a better environment for your community,” he said.
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Ray also urged youths to complement efforts by local authorities to build a better environment, saying that in so doing, they would be creating income generating projects for themselves.
He said if the youths saw that the responsible authorities were being slow in collecting refuse, they should organise themselves into groups and remove the trash and charge the local community a small fee, among other initiatives.