A new era of generations
As the past generations get older, a new age of leaders begin to emerge ready to transform and improve a brand new society. With much to learn from past generations, such as hard work and family values, there is plenty the new generation of adults can teach the past ones.
According to the Pew Research Center, current generations are defined by six categories: The Greatest Generation (born before 1928), The Silent Generation (born 1928-1945), The Baby Boom Generation (1946-1964), Generation X (1965-1989), Millennials (1981-1997) and Generation Z (1998-present).
The newer generation of millennials and the older portion of generation Z are slowly reaching adulthood and many have the desire to make the United States a sustainable and thriving society for those who come after them.
Today’s young adults want life experiences instead of material items. They would rather go on adventures and make memories that hold more value to their personal lives. They are on the hunt for happiness, not just monetary satisfaction.
According to Time magazine, “Some 76% of millennials compared to 59% of boomers, said they would rather spend on experiences than material things.”
Even though it seems that young adults have their heads down in their phones, they are much more connected to a world far beyond their own, allowing them to see above the limits and possibilities around them.
This generation of adults want real, tangible and significant change, which is something to be proud of when the time comes to help raise the next generation.
History is known for repeating itself in different forms in separate eras, but with the same generational mistakes and blindness. This new generation of young adults refuses to sit back and tend to old wounds when there is work to be done. In this lifetime, they have seen marches for women in hopes to dismantle the patriarchy, they have seen black and brown men and women fight for their civil rights against the white supremacy and teenagers march for their lives against gun violence. The list continues.
Forbes stated, “They value diversity and social justice within a whole new global context and they’ve been raised to learn in teams and work for the collective.”
Today’s young adults are proactive and, from an early age, have been raised to be empathetic and have a low tolerance for infamous epidemics such as bullying. Members of the new generation of adults are more socially aware, understand more and are willing to fight for whatever cause. It’s only natural that young adults of this generation are passionate about equality and justice of every kind.
According to Forbes, “They fight for themselves, their friends, their classmates and others they see treated unfairly, whether due to issues of gender, sexuality, race, pay, or environmental.”
It is ironic that the ideas and morals the United States was built upon are the same ideas and morals that are regressing the country today. Such as the limits of the First Amendment to election reform. The older generations expect the same 200-year-old rules to apply when the United States as a country has gone through countless numbers of changes while trying to tend to the same generational wounds of an economical and societal crisis.
Time magazine said, “The First Amendment became a tool for the wealthy to put a thumb on the scales of democracy. Ingenious financial and legal engineering turned our economy from an engine of long-term growth and shared prosperity into a casino with only a few big winners.”
What I believe new generations of young adults can teach old generations is open-mindedness. To view the new world with unbiased and unprejudiced eyes while taking accountability for the burden that the new generation inevitably inherited, will help others realize that the new age of adults can learn from their past mistakes and their honorary achievements.
After all, they are all we’ve got.
The weekly editorial expresses the majority opinion of The Rider News. This week’s editorial was written by the opinion editor, Qur’an Hansford
