My Generation does not exist in ideal times; it never has. For most of our lives, we’ve been in some sort of conflict: The Post-9/11 conflicts are still raging strong and that was half a life ago or more, but the anti-intellectualism and economic conflicts here at home have been a constant our entire lives. As we maneuver the daily grind of our stressful world, some refer to us loosely as ‘Millennials,’ often as a pejorative. However, we are Generation Y. More specifically, we are Generation: Why?
Why do we pay exorbitant costs for health care yet have lower life expectancies than those who pay less? Why do we want generations of people entering the workforce already burdened with tens of thousands of dollars of debt from education? Why are we ok with the vast majority of money created in our country going to a select few people? Why are we ok with our political system being sold to the highest bidder? Why are we ok with systematically creating second class citizens through racism, sexism, religion, etc.?
We, often, ask ‘Why?’ This, as we discover, begins to make people uncomfortable. We’re threatening the status quo. The people who are quite comfortable with the way things are don’t want a connected people asking questions. The comfortable don’t want us blinking confusedly at them, typing something into a device and saying to them we couldn’t find what they were talking about. The comfortable don’t want to be: fact-checked, questioned, challenged, or be bothered with change they did not initiate. In today’s world it is easier for the comfortable to dismiss the things that do not neatly conform to their wishes as fake, and it poses real problems. The fact-check crowd vs. the fake-news crowd is colliding and it is apparent there is an alternate reality in which the fake-news crowd have created for themselves and have retreated to in droves.
“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’” Isaac Asimov pointed this out some time ago and it has long held true. However, it is not as true now and is fading. While the willfully ignorant are a vocal minority, they are a minority, and their actions are being confronted with increasing regularity. Everything, from: the actions of discriminatory politicians to a family member on Facebook, from an ill-conceived Youtube video to bots, trolls, and shills everywhere one turns, the confrontation is real. We will continue to ask “Why?”
Our actions, because of equal and opposite reactions, has of course caused the anti-intellectuals to dig in. However, we’re not going to stop asking “Why?” We aren’t going to stop asking “Why can’t we create a nation and economy that works for us all?” We aren’t going to stop asking “Why can’t we tackle the new changing global realities?” We are going to continue asking “Where did you get that information?” We’re encouraged by the progress we can see from each other and people we touch. While we live in dark times, and in a way this is a culmination of many things that have been building throughout our entire lives, we can picture a dawn on the horizon. This picture is easier to see, for we are actively out in our respective communities creating it ourselves the best we can. We know it won’t be completed tomorrow, and we will have many moments of anger along the way, but the future has bright potential.
Our picture contains people from all walks of life. Many of us have seen the privileged, the comfortable, believe equality to be oppression. While we reject this notion, we have seen that resistance in action: for if they kill you quickly then it is an attack, but if they kill you slowly then it is just politics. We, being used to constant conflict, are fighting back. We, armed with the question “Why?” are demanding answers of people unused to accountability. We, standing abreast with those of all demographics willing to stand with those of all demographics, here in objective reality, create a better picture for us all. When we aren’t our worst enemy, what can’t we do?
(Note: VA Arts Show 2018 Gold Medal Winner – Essay, Other)