Generation X Steps Up and Takes Over

Elena Kagan joined President Obama today at a reception celebrating her confirmation as the 112th Supreme Court justice (SCOTUS). Both are members of Generation X.

Make way, Silent Generation and Baby Boomers. We, the members of Generation X, are taking over bit by bit.

We are the "Reactive" or "Nomad" generation, composed of those who were children during a social upheaval and spiritual awakening. Often the children of divorced parents, change is more the rule for us than the exception. The members of Generation X are thought to be the first generation to be raised in an age of postmodernism. Coming of age after the Vietnam War had ended, our political experiences and cultural perspectives were shaped by the end of the cold war, the fall of the Berlin wall, and a series of US economic calamities such as the 1973 oil crisis, the 1979 energy crisis, the early 1980's recession, and the savings and loan crisis - instilling a sense of economic uncertainty and a reduced expectation of long term fidelity between employers and employees, therefore, leaving us pragmatic and perceptive.

Compared with previous generations, Generation X represents a more heterogeneous generation, exhibiting great variety. We are more diverse than previous generations in such aspects as race, class, religion, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. We were the first generation whose men made less (by 12%) than our fathers had at that same age.

Dazed and Confused is the movie that best depicts my generation. It takes place in 1976. While popular music was teetering on the fulcrum between corporate rock and punk, politically American youth culture was tilting in another direction, from the rebellion and altruism of the '60s to the mindless conformity and greed of the Reagan-Bush '80s. The title Dazed and Confused isn't just a sex-drugs-booze-rock'n'roll reference; it's a fairly apt description of our moral and political state of mind at the time. As one of the characters says: "If these are the best years of my life, remind me to kill myself."



I think the reason that politics is so contentious right now is because the Boomers are having a hard time letting go of their power, not just to us but to anyone else. The way we think about things and do things is so different from them because our growing up experiences were so difficult compared to their simple childhoods. This will be our generation's biggest challenge--wresting power from the "Me Generation" and making the world possible for the "Millenials" and "Generation Y." But I am sure we will do it and do it well, like we have done everything else.