'Y' we are the generating force behind change |
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Editor's note: Natasha Clark was musing one day about her generation and the fact it doesn't seem to get the scrutiny - or respect - previous generations have. Her look at her own generation, Generation Y, follows.
By Natasha Clark
Assistant Managing Editor
We are technology. Fortune 500 companies spend their days scrambling to create faster, more efficient hardware to keep up with our ever-changing demand of what we want now.
When we speak with a unified voice, it resonates all the way to the White House. Last year voters 18 to 24 were the only age group to show a statistically significant increase in turnout, reaching 49 percent in 2008 compared with 47 percent in 2004.
We define ourselves less by religious affiliations and spend more time getting in tune with our spiritual side. Churches are closing in record numbers because we don't necessarily feel that in order to seek a higher power we need to find it in the pews.
Most of us are the offspring of baby boomers that belittle us for the very benefits they slaved for us to enjoy. We outshine the middle stepchild, Generation X, and we do it with the ease of younger sibling entitlement.
We were there when LL Cool J still had hair underneath his Kangol, when Will Smith was nothing more than the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and the biggest thing about Tom Hanks was "Big."
But when it comes to serious issues such as the economy, healthcare, global warming and war, somehow Generation Y (Gen Y) - even in the midst of our popularity - has become the forgotten class.
Who we are
The average Gen Yer, also referred to as a Millenial, is part of the largest generation since the boomers, and was born between 1978 and the early '90s. We are more than 70 million strong and most of us are either settling into our careers or figuring out the path we want to take in college.
According to a NAS Recruitment Communications report - a recognized leader in the specialized field of human resource - "The Millennials are one of the most educated generations yet and they love to learn. Going to college is no longer reserved for the elite, it is the norm. Today, 64 percent of women and 60 percent of men go to college after graduating high school and 85 percent attend full-time."
In addition to great pay, we are seeking fulfillment from our employment. Maintaining a balanced family life is equally just as important.
While our successors tend to define themselves by upper, middle and lower class, all of the Gen Yers The Reminder spoke to did not.
Allison, a West Springfield resident born in 1981, said, "I don't define myself by class. At one point I believe that people used these labels as a way of adding value to themselves and others (or taking it away), but I personally believe that there is much more than that."
Gen Y hates to be pigeon-holed. We are comprised of such a diverse population that we tend to have tolerance and lean toward experimentation rather than traditional methods of thinking and/or behavior.
We get married later in life, our women are increasingly in positions of power and we often prefer to have more than one college degree.
Yes, we are also known for being fantastic consumers. However, we are very interested in sitting at the big boys' table at suppertime and slowly, we are elbowing our way into a seat.
Hello, world? Are you listening?
On a daily basis we are bombarded with talk of a failing economy, poor healthcare and plummeting employment rates. While the boomers are doing all of the talking, Gen Yers are feeling more and more like the kid in the back of the class who never gets called on.
"From an advertising standpoint, it seems the media loves our generation because we have disposable income and will spend money on things we don't really need," Katie, a South Hadley account executive born in 1984, said. "So in that sense we are a huge asset. But because this age group sometimes spends more, there's also a level of frivolty that's associated with us that makes it easier for older generations to write us off as wasteful when that's not necessarily the case."
Sherard, a Springfield retail manager born in 1980, agreed. "Everyone talks about [the fact] that we are tomorrow, but no one is willing to guide us in the direction."
Most Gen Yers were raised by hands-on parents, still the times tend to keep us separated in terms of thinking. For instance, my mother, raised in the 1940s, considers laziness to be one of the biggest plagues of my generation.
Allison did not think this was surprising because Gen Y is always painted with the brush of apathy and the insinuation "that people of our age don't care about the world, and will sit back as it falls apart. That our generation is overrun with 'Twixters,' adults who return to live with their parents after college or losing a job. There is even a book currently on the newsstands entitled, 'The Dumbest Generation: Don't Trust Anyone Under 30.'"
Joshua, a West Springfield student working toward a degree in social work, said his mother participated in the civil rights movement. Born in 1979, he said his Jewish household gave him a strong foundation to recognize and identify with the underdog.
"Although my mother and I have had a difference of opinion in many political forums, we have come to the understanding that even though my mother gave me life, she also nurtured my intellect enough so that I can make my own decisions," Joshua said.
In an executive summary of Gen Y Salvation Army Focus Groups on www.fundraisingsuccessmag.com, it was reported that Gen Yers surprisingly "were highly involved with charities in their community and have a genuine desire to help others and see the effects of their efforts."
Of those who agreed to talk to me about issues facing our generation almost all of them said the most pressing issues of our generation are finance, healthcare and the planet Earth.
"I can't think of one person I know in this generation who doesn't have some kind of credit card debt, outstanding student loans, or trouble paying monthly bills like mortgages, rent or insurance," Katie said.
"The economy has very much so affected me in terms of financial aid, health insurance, even gas. It almost seems that prices for everything go up, up, up, except for paychecks which go down, down down," Joshua said.
Many Gen Yers felt the last presidential election was a crucial moment in securing a great future for Americans and others abroad.
Ludlow resident and marketing director Diana, born in 1984, said it all played a part when it came to voting for a candidate.
"Strength was probably the number one quality I was looking for," she said. "I did not care as much about issues as I did about who could carry this country out of the recession and effectively resolve our problems in the Middle East. I was looking at the bigger picture."
Sherard said the time for change was a major point of interest when he voted, though now he is not quite sure the candidate he supported has the ideals and policies that benefit Gen Y.
"The focus was there to get the votes during the election time and now it has faded away and they are focusing on their generation," Sherard explained.
Katelyn, a journalist born in 1983 who resides in Belchertown, said not even state and local legislators are interested in Generation Y. "They have a different audience - families and senior citizens. They're mostly concerned about healthcare, senior services and public school education. I do believe, however, that national leaders are working for all of us, young and old."
Katie said the people in power aren't in our age bracket, so it is easy for them to be disillusioned by all the government dealings on a local and national level.
"I've opted out of political talk lately simply due to the fact that the issues that are important to older Americans right now don't pertain to me," Katie said.
But issues facing older Americans always have a trickle down effect. Last month a Wall Street Journal article pointed out that "retirement savings are of particular concern for younger Americans because under current actuarial assumptions the Social Security trust fund will be exhausted in 2039, the year the first of Gen Y will turn 62, and benefits could be threatened unless changes are made."
Global warming is also an imminent threat looming in Gen Y's horizon.
"We are at a critical point where action is absolutely needed. After many years of exploiting our Earth, we now need to take measures to preserve it, for our generation, and those to come," Allison shared.
When you take into account the root of many of the problems Gen Y is facing, it would be safe to say Gen Y is left cleaning up the mess of previous generations, without the recognition that our brooms actually contribute to anything other than advertising dollars aimed our way during TV sweeps week.
What we want
I believe that Gen Y wants what all others wanted - to leave the world in better shape than we found it. Hasn't that been the precedent? The age group Tom Brokaw dubbed the Greatest Generation produced individuals such as John F. Kennedy who grew up in the Great Depression.
The Baby Boom Generation gave us the benefits of the civil rights movement. Generation X delved head-first into pop culture and gave us our MTV.
Gen Y gets flack for feeling "entitled" when the truth is our parents indulged us with all of the luxuries they were forced to do without. How can we be considered self-absorbed if cable TV, cellular phones and microwaveable dinners have been available to us for, like, ever?
Sure, we're a little extravagant but we also read all of our forefathers' hard-learned lessons in our history books and, more or less, have done a pretty good job so far of not repeating them. We as a generation are less likely to be racist, sexist and against gay rights.
We live in a post-Sept. 11 world where declarations of war are not something that just happens on foreign land, but right here on American soil.
We've had our own natural disasters (Hurricane Katrina) and our generation's Elvis, Michael Jackson, has died, too. We have our own "Remember When" stories, like when gas cost $1.19 and a fight after school didn't involve sharp-edged weapons or a handgun.
Big brother is quick to take our tax dollars and yet tell us to be quiet, adults are talking, when real issues are on the table. First we couldn't get a job because we had no experience, now we're either too experienced for the jobs the economy is forcing us to apply for or the boomers are getting back in the employment line and stealing the positions they just vacated.
Diana summed up the Gen Y experience perfectly: "Take advantage of every opportunity. Always strive to be your best. Don't let anyone or anything bring you down. Find yourself and love yourself. Love your family - make them proud. Treat others the way you would like to be treated. Make good decisions, follow your instincts and trust in God and you will find your way."
Oh, yeah, and Joshua added, "For God's sake eat your veggies."
After all, isn't that what we were taught to do?
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