The millennial generation is one of the largest generations and we are the most diverse yet. We have grown up in an era where we saw the shift from getting your movie at Blockbuster to checking your Netflix queue. Saw the innovations of new technology, to the point where we have witnessed a new technological feat annually. This ever changing era has allowed us to become desensitized to technology. We have shaped our lives around technology, we view our phones and computers as an extension of ourselves. This helps to explain why our generation is often plagued with the stereotype that we are not politically active. That we would rather send out a tweet talking about a Presidential candidate or share an article about a terrorist attack. Instead of protesting these situations like previous generations who fought for civil rights and protested wars. While I do believe that our generation feels more comfortable with technology, I would like to believe we do more.
The thing that people often do not take into account is that we have grown up in an era where we do not need to fight like the previous generations did. We are growing up in a time where we may have controversy and inequality, but we had people before us who paved the way. I believe that our generation is developing a new form of political activism. No matter your view on social media and technology, everyone can argue that it has impacted politics. The previous Presidential elections had social media campaigns that helped establish candidates. President Obama’s use of social media showcased the immense power that social media has on politics. The President used social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to engage millennials and focus on issues that mattered to them. Social media may seem superficial at times with Instagram models and artsy food photos flooding our feeds. But, it has allowed millennials to connect to politicians and express their concerns.
The current Presidential Election showcases the power that millennials possess due to their social media knowledge. Senator Bernie Sanders appeared to be a random candidate running against the well-known Hillary Clinton. But, social media’s infatuation with Bernie Sanders grew his support base and allowed him to be a contender in this Presidential race. Regardless of your opinion on him, Donald Trump is also a result of social media. The reality star and businessman seemed an odd candidate and many assumed that he would fizzle out. Well, I believe we all know how that turned out, the man who is known for his twitter feud is the Republican Party frontrunner. He has dominated the primaries, with his every word and action being documented on social media. Many people are becoming involved for the first time this election cycle because they keep hearing about it on social media platforms.
To me, our generation is so much more than our social media use. We have flooded Presidential candidate’s rallies and protested the inequalities that have become part of our lives. Our generation has talked about issues of gender equality and stood behind the LGBT community. We have addressed the fact that we still struggle with racial prejudice and that our education system has become too focused on test scores. We are the generation that will have to combat the ever-growing student debt and figure out how to prevent global warming. Sure we do use social media a lot and that we may seem to have priorities that other generations view as silly. But, we are the generation that is trying to figure out things for ourselves, and not just believe what we are told. Social media is an outlet for our generation to obtain information and we use that information to be politically engaged.
