In one photo, a circle of teens, each no more than 16 years old, pose in front of their personal jet. In another, the backseat of a Ferrari is stacked high with shopping bags. A girl shows off her massive diamond ring.
Rich Kids of Instagram is an embarrassing look at the American upper class and a total misrepresentation of young people. And yet it’s somehow become the symbol of a supposedly self-obsessed generation of Millennials.
With the onslaught of new social media platforms – Twitter, Instagram and Facebook – it’s really no surprise my generation has been targeted for its narcissistic ways. But how much truth is there behind this statement?
The other week Time magazine ran a feature blasting 20 somethings for their selfish, entitled, shallow behavior. Author Joel Stein even accompanied the piece with a short video of his foray into “Generation Me” in which he “sexts” his wife, incessantly checks his phone and searches his closet for band T-shirts. It’s the silly hook for a tired claim: Our generation is better than yours.
Stein cites sociological data, like the growing incidence of narcissism in 20 somethings, the number of youth still living under their parent’s roof and the fact that young people are stalling careers for minimum wage gigs. I’ve even seen studies comparing pop lyrics from today and 10 years ago, for the number of times “Me” and “I” appears.
Most of this data can be refuted with other data and the simple explanation that we’re still recovering from a devastating recession. But Stein’s article and the many other studies that have tried to characterize Millennials are disconcerting for two reasons: they’re massive generalizations and they miss the point.
Science tells us that from your teens through your early 20s, we’re still developing our brains, which could partly explain that surly, navel-gazing. In other words, no matter the decade, youth marks a period of extreme self-absorption. Are we really that much more egotistical for our Instagram accounts and Facebook statuses, or do we just happen to be growing up in a more public space with our missteps and first wobbly steps into adulthood posted across six different social media platforms.
We’ve been pegged for our apathy, but Millennials have spotlighted and galvanized major movements: Occupy Wall Street, the environmental movement, LGBT rights and immigration reform. While those issues have been bolstered by supporters in all age brackets, young people in particular have shown an ability to think not only outside ourselves, but also globally and many generations out.
It’s human nature to categorize, label and define, but the “Me Generation” is so much more than its Twitter feeds and personal blogs.
Generation Millennial is the first to grow up with the World Wide Web, such incredible interconnectivity and the prevalence of travel. Cut us some slack, Baby Boomers. We’re a generation suddenly aware of how big the world is, and trying to come into our own.
Celina Kareiva: 425-453-4290; ckareiva@bellevuereporter.com
