As forerunners of the future, we, the Millennial Generation, are stepping up to the start of the rest of our lives. A group of optimistic, technologically savvy and confident individuals, we puzzle the cohorts that came of age before us and are blazing our own trail for those who follow.
The ever-enduring compilation of information through Internet, television and mobile phone portals has shaped the way we perceive the world, a world where the only constant is that nothing is constant. But whether teeming with excitement about high-tech advancement or remaining skeptical about work ethic in the work force, the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X have formulated their views on our place in society.
“The workplace has become a psychological battlefield and the Millennials have the upper hand, because they are tech savvy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies. They multitask, talk, walk, listen and type and text. And their priorities are simple: they come first,” said Morley Safer, CBS News correspondent and reporter of the “60 Minutes” piece The Millennials are Coming.
Whether we serve ourselves first or last, members of our own generation generate positive conceptions about our offerings to the world.
Alejandra Salinas, a junior in the College of Arts & Sciences, said society’s view on the Millennials’ sham of an image offends her, especially since she spends much of her time giving back to the community through volunteer work. Every generation encompasses generous as well as self-serving characters, she said.
According to the Pew Research Center, 68 percent of us consider ourselves distinct and unique. Compared with young adults 20 years ago, 84 percent of us feel we have better educational opportunities, 72 percent believe we have access to higher paying jobs, and 64 percent think we live in more exciting times.
But the truth cannot be assuaged that we have been characterized as the “Look at Me” generation, according to the Pew Research Center.
Social networking groups such as Facebook and MySpace have transformed communication for our generation. The power to connect with friends, plan social get-togethers and post photographs of ourselves is at our type-happy fingertips.
Ann-Margaret Swick, a freshman in the College of Nursing, said she spends time on Facebook simply because it’s fun.
“I really use it to talk to people who are far away,” Swick said. As she perused her profile in the library, she also acknowledged her hours of Facebook leisure and procrastination are one and the same.
Alex Matusiak, a sophomore in the College of Engineering, said while Facebook allows him to stay in touch with those out of his local reach, he also uses it to communicate with friends with whom he doesn’t regularly spend time.
“Technology keeps people connected and allows people to transfer information quickly,” Matusiak said.
But even with technology’s relationship benefits, Matusiak said he notices a need for moderation.
“I see it being melded into a lot of applications,” he said. “The Internet, with the advent of wireless, is eventually going to be everywhere. I think we are going to have to realize that enough is enough and limit our integration at some point.”
Matusiak said he also uses Skype, an online phone service, in order to connect with his family abroad in Poland. Current technology poses a drastic change for the better; Matusiak said he remembers waiting hours for phone calls from his relatives to come through or sending letters to Poland that took six weeks to arrive at their destination.
Technology assists in maintaining the high value we place on tending to our relationships with friends and family. According to the Pew Research Center, eight out of ten Millennials say they have talked with their parents in the past day, while another three out of four see their parents at least once a week.
Parents of the Millennial generation adhere to the generalization of helicopter behavior, constantly hovering over their young adult children and stepping in whether intervention is deemed appropriate or not.
Dawn Moon, associate professor of sociology, said many of her colleagues have noticed general parent involvement between student and teacher ordeals has increased over the past few years.
Inside the classroom, professors do not wish to hear from outside the realm of campus with parent calls and e-mails concerning student matters, Moon said.
Why does Moon believe parents meddle in our young adult affairs? She said parents of Millennials have provided their children with too much assistance.
“They are not showing them how to do things, they are just doing it for them,” Moon said.
And those individuals who coddled us through our childhood often uphold our greatest admiration. According to the Pew Research Center, our heroes are close and familiar.
When asked to name someone we admire, we are twice as likely as older Americans to name a family member, teacher or mentor.
Moon said she questions the actual differentiation between generations and believes age plays a large role in determining the way society behaved in the past as well as present day.
The genesis of “youth culture” evolved through the creation of popular culture during the postwar economic boom of the 1950s, Moon said. Young people had disposable income and sought means of merrymaking, seeking out the radical new sounds of rock and roll. During the 1950s Elvis Presley shocked hoards of parents with his pelvic thrust dance moves. A decade later, the Beatles invented tunes that provoked swarms of screaming fans and inflamed disgruntled adults. Now, rap music incites feelings parallel to the youth and adults of yesterday with those of present day, Moon said.
“Every generation is criticized at one time or another,” Moon said. “Whatever young people are doing, they are doing it to distinguish themselves from generations before.”
Previous generations grew up in a society structured differently than today. Then a transformation occurred; today’s youth moved in a new direction. The youth, the Millennials, seem drawn to the issues that affect the most people as opposed to the predicaments intertwined heavily with their beliefs, she said.
Moon said our thought process as the Millennial Generation is progressive, and according to the Pew Research Center, our generation maintains a higher tolerance level than past generations.
The center found that 58 percent of young adults said homosexuality should be accepted, compared to 50 percent of adults age 26 and older. On the issue of immigration, 52 percent of young adults said it strengthens a nation, compared with 39 percent of those age 26 and older.
With the presidential election coming up so quickly, these views will play a prominent role.
Lillian Figg-Franzoi, a freshman in the College of Arts & Sciences who attended Marquette’s Barack Obama Block Party, said she feels excited about this election and the fact that young people seem strongly involved and opinionated.
“Young voters are finding their own ways to become involved in grassroots campaigns,” she said. “Little steps go a long way.”
Salinas, who volunteered to assist students in voter registration at the party, said, “I feel like it’s my civic duty to vote. There are people around the world that would die to vote. If you really support someone, you should show your support.”
Salinas said one election cannot solve the wealth of problems in the world, but she believes in Obama’s mission and character and, above all, that politics should go beyond political parties. As an Obama supporter, Salinas joins the majority of our generation that is more likely to identify with the Democratic Party than the Republican Party, making us the most democratic generation ever, according to the Pew Research Center.
On the cusp of full-fledged adulthood, our generation must recognize that we are the future, Salinas said. After college, the economy and job market will affect all of us, and conscious voting efforts now will shape the United States later.
“Change is not going to come in a day; it’s going to come over years,” Salinas said. “We have to decide if this is the direction we want to go. And if you don’t get involved, you don’t have a right to complain about the way things are.”
Since 2004, the trend in falling young voter turnout was reversed, according to the Pew Research Center. In 2004, young people actively participated in political campaigns, matching or exceeding the Baby Boomers in activities such as wearing buttons, displaying signs, attending rallies or persuading others to vote, the study said.
As we, the Millennials, turn out to pack a political punch in the election, we are beginning to discover the power in both our youth and growing maturity. In the workplace, in the classroom and in the homes we cherish, we are ringing in a global world shaped by our turn-of-the-century philosophy.