What is a millennial according to our society? A millennial can be considered someone born between 1980 and the early 2000s. Named by their predecessors, the Baby Boomers and Generation X, millennials have been described as disinterested, self-obsessed, dreamers, and are known as the “Me Generation” to others.
Constantly teased and taunted for being selfish and narcissistic, is what so many of our predecessors say an accurate description of us?
*Enter John Green*
John Green is most recognized as an American author of young adult fiction. He has written novels including "The Fault in Our Stars," "Looking for Alaska," and "Paper Towns." These novels recount the adventures of millennial characters of our generation. His writing has garnered him a place in Time Magazine’s list of The 100 Most Influential People in the World and "The Fault in Our Stars" was on The New York Times bestseller list in January 2012.
Aside from being a novelist, John Green is also a Youtuber, and appears on a channel called “The Vlogbrothers” with his brother Hank Green. He has developed a total of 11 online series, including "Crash Course" and his original channel. He and his brother create unique vlogs that not only are entertaining, but promote and participate in a number of humanitarian efforts.
Green’s fan base is primarily young adults, or what our society considers millennials. He explains that he has been asked repeatedly how he communicates with our generation. To this question, he responds with an article describing just how much he hates the word “millennial.”
By speaking out, Green presents a positive perspective of our generation that is rarely made public by those older than us. John Green, age 38 and a member of Generation X, speaks proudly about his interactions with millennials.
His brother, Hank Green, has recently made a follow up video, further discussing the topic. He states, "It's very strange to me that one of the chief complaints of the older generation...is that young people these days have it too easy. Especially when it's increasingly clear that they don't."
They explain that we are stereotyped, and that these stereotypes are incredibly inaccurate of our actual character. John and Hank demonstrate that, against popular opinion, their successors are not destined to ruin the world.
With these negative stereotypes associated with the word millennial, it is time for a change.
To those generations that come before us: Do not doubt our ability to change the world. Yes, technology has made our lives simpler, but it does not make us weak.
We are more engaged than you think. Just because we are heavily involved with technology, it does not mean we are self-obsessed. In his recent video, John Green explains how to understand the sovereign budget deficits and debt to GDP ratio. More than 700,000 people viewed it, and almost all of them were millennials. We, just like you, are focused on bettering both ourselves and our society.
Our generation is just as engaged in politics, social justice, and education as previous generations. Our voices are just conveyed in different ways, such as the internet and social media. Yes, we do have more ways to communicate and we have the ability to make life simpler. But we still use the internet for good. For example, Green’s Youtube-based charity event, called The Project for Awesome, raised over $1,500,000. The unprecedented success of this project depended entirely on social media connections instigated primarily by young people across the globe. We do not use the internet to promote our laziness. It is a place for discussion, argument, and sharing that will improve our knowledge and understanding of the world we live in and enable us to make it a better place than it is currently.
As Green so accurately states, “when we listen to young people, we acknowledge them as fully human.” The global issues we are facing require the work of everyone on this planet. Not just you. Not just us. So, rather than treat us like the lesser generation, allow us the opportunity to contribute. We care about the world. We are intelligent individuals focused on creating a better tomorrow. We want to contribute.
To Us, the Millennials: We are the last people on this planet to have known what life was like before cell phones or even the internet. We have grown up learning to adapt quickly to new technology and its continual updates thrown our way. Our generation has become accustomed to technology, and we determine how it will be used next. As we continue to embrace the advances of science, literature, education, language, religion, cultural consciousness, and technology, we have an obligation to set up positive social standards for future generations.
We can deny existing stereotypes, but only with a focused effort. We have been put down by the generations that have preceded us, a group that not only doubts our intentions but is determined to prove us wrong. We are considered a generation of technology and narcissism, when in reality our technology allows us to grow in ways that would have been previously unimaginable. Our generation must continue to grow, exercising intellectual curiosity and striving to live up to our morals, while remaining determined to change the world.
"In my work, I have seen again and again that young people want to contribute. We just need to let them."
