With all of the hate regarding millennials, it would be so easy to jump on the bandwagon and talk negatively about my age group of people around the world. We're told by those above us that we're entitled, lazy, fake radicals without a cause so often that when I used to hear the word 'millennial', I automatically thought of it as a shameful thing.

I'm not trying to offend anyone here, but the first controversial thing that I'm going to just throw out there briefly is that we didn't raise ourselves. Millennials have parents. I'm not blaming any of our parents for the ways that we act, but I am saying that if you don't want your kids to be lazy, entitled, or fake then you shouldn't allow them to be.

We're "entitled". The source of this is so evident. Ever since I was a preteen, I've heard so many of my friends say things like, "I got in a fight with my parents," or, "I told my parents that I was going to (fill in the blank)." Since when were kids allowed to fight with their parents? Since when did parents allow their kids to tell them what to do?

If we seem entitled, I apologize. Although this never happened in my house, a lot of people our age were raised believing that we were the head of the household.

I think that a lot of millennials are seen as lazy because it's difficult to find motivation a lot of the time. With the way that the world is currently (including millennials, adults, and kids from all over the world), I'll admit that it's hard to be motivated to do good and useful things in a world that's so broken.

We're seen as radicals because our age group of people is always the first to stand up for a cause even if it's a useless one. Even though I agree that a lot of our protesting doesn't have a worthy cause, I believe that we just love the idea of being a part of something bigger- something that will make a difference.

There's a lot of negativity surrounding the concept of being a millennial, but a lot of us are working to change that. Being a millennial doesn't have to be a bad thing. We're inventive. We're inclusive. We continue to be ourselves despite the doubts that everyone seems to have about us

I'm not ashamed to be a millennial. In fact, I'm proud that I get to claim this era of people as part of my own.