Millennials Lived Through 3 ‘Great Betrayals’ That Shaped The Generation’s Values
The impact of these major moments should not be understated.
fizkes | Shutterstock Every generation is shaped by pivotal moments during its adolescence. According to content creator Sedona Violet, for millennials, that includes three "great betrayals."
She explained that millennials lived through 3 'great betrayals' that shaped the generation's values.
According to Violet, while Gen Z is puritanical, the millennial generation is particularly hedonistic, meaning they prioritize seeking pleasure. "A lot of it has to do with the three great betrayals," she said.
The first great betrayal was 9/11.
This was when millennials experienced the death of their innocence, Violet said. This catastrophic event certainly impacted society as a whole, but the millennial generation was especially affected, having been between the ages of 5 and 20.
"On that fateful morning, the oldest millennials were seniors in high school, while the youngest were just infants. For the first time in their lives, they were confronted with the fact that their government and their parents were not in control," political commentator Margaret Hoover wrote in 2011. "In an instant, these young Americans realized that their country wasn’t invulnerable."
Violet noted that boomers were largely absent for millennials at this time. Gen Xers, millennials' eldest siblings, faded away, traumatized by boomers' abandonment and unable to help millennials cope.
"The hedonism of the 2000s and early 2010s is a direct result of post-9/11 trauma in our generation," Violet continued. "A great example of what we were dealing with can be seen in our media because, unlike today, where I know for a fact a lot of Gen Z is not living a 'Euphoria' experience, we were in fact living a 'Skins'/'Degrassi' experience."
The second great betrayal was the Great Recession.
This was the death of millennials' financial futures, Violet said.
"The financial crisis of 2008 left no generation untouched: Silent, boomer, and Gen X households all experienced wealth loss," Business Insider economics correspondent Hillary Hoffower wrote. But millennials, who were between 12 and 27 years old at the time, have lifelong trauma from the recession.
"When the crisis began in 2007, the oldest millennials were 26, an age at which most of the generation hadn't yet accumulated substantial wealth. It's this cohort that bore the true brunt of the financial crisis," Hoffower continued. "From the very beginning of their careers, they entered a tough job market and experienced wage stagnation. On top of that, they faced rising living costs and were confronted with their own student-loan debt, which, thanks to low wages, was difficult to repay."
The third great betrayal was Donald Trump's first presidency.
Violet said that the first Donald Trump presidency represented the death of millennials' political future. The generation was expected to be more progressive than the older generations, yet the 2016 election went in the Republicans' favor, changing the course of our country.
"The idea that we are a generation that somehow squandered our opportunity is well and truly entrenched in Gen Z," she noted
Because of the three great betrayals millennials experienced during their formative years, they refuse to adhere to the path that's been laid out for them. They've been betrayed too deeply, and no longer want to play the game.
“[Gen Z’s] response to seeing their elders being abused by life was to conform, the way [millennials’] response to being abused by life was to express,” Violet concluded. “Very simply, Gen Z wants to fit the mold that was made for them, and we have always wanted to break ours.”
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
