Burner Kids, Canon Digital Rebel, 28-135 IS Zoom Lens

Jade and Kalea gear up for an evening in Black Rock City, Burning Man 2004.

There was a lot of talk about kids and Burning Man this year. Apparently, there are some local authorities (and non-local activist groups) who feel that Burning Man exposes kids to indecency and therefore constitutes abuse. Ask these two about their experiences, though, and you're far more likely to hear about what they learned about themselves, the community, and their families than you are to hear anything negative. The kids we know had a wonderful time, and handled it as well as (or better than) a lot of adults.

As eleven-year-old Kalea puts it in an article she wrote that was published in the Burning Man alternative newspaper, Piss Clear, "I think it should be up to me whether I go or not, leave or stay. I'm the only one who knows if I'm uncomfortable with something! I mean, really, I am not going to get drunk (beer stinks) or high (so does weed), and sex is stupid and gross...so for once, will the world just have a little faith in us kids?"