I was initially going to post an independent piece on my experiences under the new administration, but after recently coming across a certain article, I see now that a response may be more appropriate.

To the author of “Dear Snowflake Generation:”

I firstly want to say that I admire your conviction. That’s something we definitely need from young people today, and it’s fantastic that you also seem to recognize that. You appear to see a very clear and particular image of our generation, and your will to use your voice to create change is remarkable in itself. From the portrait you paint for your readers, I almost understand why you would want to contribute your ideas on how to become “the generation that changed the world.”

The thing is, you’ve painted a caricature of us using a pallet of muted colors.

Let’s “talk things out like adults,” shall we? I mean, when you juxtapose speaking like adults and “needing limited speech to feel safe,” you make it look like taking offense to someone’s words is childish. Let me be the first to respond: it isn’t.

I’m not offended by the term, “snowflake.” I don’t have the time. I am however unsettled by the way you condemn our entire generation, writing all millennials off as lazy and entitled people. Your claim that we are all unable to “take tension… [and] deal with adversity” makes me wonder if you truly understand how much tension and adversity we are facing — or even, if you’ve ever really known what it’s like to struggle. Many of us have grown up in homes that fall well underneath the poverty line, and because of this, many of us are unable to afford to go to college and earn a degree in the first place. Your theory of “working hard” is the fundamental idea of a meritocracy, which has been proven time and time again to be both ineffective and oppressive. Think about it for a moment: how are we supposed to afford a house, or even a decent apartment, with jobs that do not pay enough, and rent prices and mortgages that continue to increase?

I also don’t see people my age “demanding that the world sees our uniqueness” either. To express ourselves and identify however we feel is our right; we’re not pushing some agenda to attract everyone’s attention, we’re just existing the way we are comfortable. It is not someone’s fault for being noticed.

As for your pro-life commentary: I’m not going to get into the pro-choice/pro-life debate simply because that’s an entirely different conversation that I just don’t have adequate space for in this article. You are allowed to choose whatever position you want, but I do feel as though your pro-life statements can’t be empirically defended, and are out of place and off topic.

I especially would like to point out two specific statements of yours.

“We need to stop seeing those things which we disagree with as oppression.” I really can’t express to my own liking exactly how belittling this is. Oppression is not something to be trivialized as disagreement. If I like ice cream and you don’t, no one is being oppressed. To make disagreement the equivalent of oppression is to say that both parties are oppressed by each other, and that’s just completely incorrect.

“We need to stop demanding handouts and free college and start picking majors that will allow us to provide for ourselves and pay back our loans.” I have a few questions. Do you think that everyone has the same skills? I mean, that’s what you’re implying here. The beauty about our generation is that so many of us embrace and share our skills with the world, and the talents that we all have are as diverse as ever. Not everyone can be a STEM major.

Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, I was beginning my senior year in high school, completely motivated to get accepted to a nursing school. I changed my mind at the last minute, and figured out that I actually want to teach English! Now let me ask you: did I choose the one that would make me more money, or the one that would make me the happiest?

Of course I chose the second one! I know that no paycheck will ever give me the gratitude or sense of purpose that teaching will. Your statement just doesn’t stand — you can’t blame us for wanting to learn, nor can you tell us that we have to pick our majors based on how quickly they would help us pay back our loans. That’s just depressing.

Not to mention, how can we pick any major when so many of us can’t afford to go to college at all? With a degree functioning as your standard of “working hard,” are you implying that those who cannot afford to or choose not to go to college do not work hard?

I’m not trying to completely tear apart your article. I disagree with a lot of what you’re saying, sure. But there is one thing that I will agree with. When you say that some of us “aren’t willing to fight for” our demands, you’re not totally wrong. I think that we all (myself included) should be more encouraging and supportive when it comes to people who may hesitate to join the conversation.

Our generation is already taking measures to change the world. We are a beautifully diverse bunch of nasty, loud, and proud young people. Much of what we are fighting for includes measures that will ensure our physical safety, and I think that’s our common ground with those who generally disagree with us. Think about the DAPL; think about Flint. Of course we’re going to make ourselves heard; it’s life or death for a lot of people, which is something that those with certain privileges can’t relate to. But, just because you’ve never lived through something does not mean you can’t help shine a spotlight on injustice.

So, yeah. You’re definitely right. We’re all a bunch of snowflakes.

We embrace the fact that no two of us are exactly alike, and allow ourselves to feel human emotion. We are at our strongest when we are united, and even when it seems like we are melting in a particularly red fire, we will continue to march through the flames.