The Millennials Are Waking Up (by Cara Boekeloo)
During the 2004 election cycle, I was bombarded repeatedly with messages about how young voters had failed to be involved in the electoral process. My generation—the Millennials—was failing to live up to its potential, it seemed. This time we're starting to shake things up—and people are taking note.
Motivated by growing economic inequalities, a declining environment, excessive war, and a Third World desperately in need of attention, the Millennials are demanding change. It's no coincidence that the word has become the rallying cry of those seeking the presidency.
In the February issue of Sojourners, I discuss how the Millennials are reviving the environmental movement through creative means such as the National Campus Energy Challenge (you can follow the February 2008 contest here). At PowerShift, a youth conference confronting climate crisis, I was amazed by the energy and enthusiasm that surrounded me.
In Sunday's Washington Post, Morley Winograd and Michael D. Hais cite the energy evidenced by "thousands of young people filling an arena" last week at American University, when Senator Edward M. Kennedy offered his endorsement of Barack Obama. They describe "civic-minded millenials," as coming of age. "Civic generations," they wrote, "react against the idealist generations' efforts to use politics to advance their own moral causes and focus instead on reenergizing social, political, and government institutions to solve pressing national issues." It would seem—borrowing terminology from Jim Wallis—that my generation is finally waking up. And it's high time.Instead of using the political system to advance key moral issues, let us use those moral motivations to re-energize the system. Concern for the environment is a moral issue—let's demand of our political leaders that action be taken. If we want to reduce the number of abortions, let's fund systems that help low-income mothers and mothers unprepared to deal with unexpected pregnancy. If we want this war to stop claiming lives—and we're not just talking about U.S. soldiers here, Christ weeps for the countless Iraqi civilians, too—let's work to confront our elected officials, demanding they take concrete steps to bring us home.
It's an exciting time, a time filled with the hope of change. I'm proud to be part of a generation that's demanding it. Let's keep it up.
Cara Boekeloo is an editorial assistant for Sojourners.
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Comments
I hope you can see that you ought to be appealing to the government leader to do less, and to let people take care of each other themselves. If you want a greener earth, then use less electricity. What can the government do to improve that? Regulations offer negative incentives. Why not privatize and deregulate power so that the prices go up naturally and people use less? Remove government protection from favored corporations and let the market return to freedom, which it is far from now.
Adopt babies. Offer to pay mothers to carry them to term. No more abortions and lots of babies. That would be a good thing. Unless you believe in the farce that is overpopulation. What nonsense!
And don't suggest that we bring soldiers home from Iraq unless you are also willing to insist that they bring them home from Germany, Japan, Cuba, and all of the other 120+ nations where we have troops. I am willing to do that. Bring them all home and dissolve the armed service. Give the guns to the state militias and point the guns out.
Also, don't argue for the protection of some privileges but not for others. If immigrants should be allowed into the US in unlimited numbers (As I believe they should) then simultaneously eliminate all entitlement programs: social security, public schools, medicade, unemployment insurance, welfare, and the rest. If the Christians are supposed to care for the poor, then it is our job alone, and non-Christians don't have any obligation. Or should we foist our morals on others? I thought you were against that!
For consistency in our agendas we must look to the extremes, or we are just as wishy-washy as the pagans.
Nathanael Snow
ndsnow@gmail.com
Posted by: jurisnaturalist | February 4, 2008 7:54 PM
I would hope that we would turn back the liberal democratic policies that give incentives for women and men to live togather out of wedlock and give women incentives to get pregnant. Before the major shitch in social policies in the 60's the premarital birth rate was not a big problem. You talk about lowering the amount of abortions, how about turning back these dumb programs that have led to more women having babies to begin with.
Posted by: Jess | February 4, 2008 9:46 PM
Why should we care whether pagan men and women live together outside of wedlock? Why should we care if pagan women want to get pregnant? Aren't babies a good thing? Does it matter who gives birth to them? If the pagans want to get together and pay each other to have babies, let them.
Christians ought to welcome the babies, unconditionally. The mothers should be welcomed, too, but subject to participation in the Christian ethic. Conversion ought to be encouraged but not forced. Required for communion, but not for mercy, though that treads a fine line, doesn't it?
Support of policies that impose morality through the force of the state are illegitimate, whether they are pro-life or pro-welfare. It is the state that corrupts them. Christians ought to be about accomplishing their peculiar mandate despite and without any reliance on force or manipulation.
Keep it pure.
Nathanael Snow
ndsnow@gmail.com
Posted by: jurisnaturalist | February 4, 2008 9:59 PM
"If we want to reduce the number of abortions, let's fund systems that help low-income mothers and mothers unprepared to deal with unexpected pregnancy. "
Sounds logical . Of course lets just let the middle class ones die ,or the ones who find the inconvenience of it as having nothing to do with poverty die too .
Whoops , did not mean to sound so callous ? Or was that your political rhetoric doing with a human life .
Posted by: Mick | February 4, 2008 10:02 PM
No Mick,
I mean assume full responsibility for each and every last one of them. They can't be responsible if they don't have Jesus. Take care of the mothers until the babies are born at the expense of the Christians, not the state, and then offer to take care of the babies if the mothers don't want them. And offer to take care of the mothers if they are willing to accept the Christian ethic.
NS
Posted by: jurisnaturalist | February 4, 2008 10:17 PM
No Mick,
I mean assume full responsibility for each and every last one of them
Posted by: jurisnaturalist
You are a rebel my friend . Ok but is that what you are doing , or is this you go first Mick and I will follow , or should we just both jump into this ? Or can I watch first , Ok ,
Can I make excuses why I am not doing this ?
You must have have prayed before you logged on , I feel like I have been challenged to all Heaven .
Posted by: Mick | February 5, 2008 2:02 AM
I am active in supporting the things I advocate. My money follows what I say, and so does my time. But believers have to have money to do what I am saying. My wife is a successful entrepreneur. We were missionaries to downtown Durham, NC for eight years before that. The thing that bugs me are all the people who say it can't be done, that there are not enough Christians, or that the Christians don't have enough money to do it all without the help of the state. Nonsense. Utter irresponsibility. There is enough money, just as there is enough space to allow millions upon millions of more immigrants into this country. We can and are doing it.
NS
Posted by: jurisnaturalist | February 5, 2008 9:24 AM
Funny how this article was about the Millenials and ain't nobody here commenting but us old goats.
One encouraging thing: the Millenials (and by this should I assume that this is about Christian Millenials) may be re-examining a lot of the Old Guard's priorities--even lightening up on the same-sex marriage thing-- but are still pretty firm about abortion. This has been a relief.
Posted by: I and I | February 5, 2008 9:48 AM
It's great to see people of all ages getting involved civicly, but it's important to remember that politicians are flawed human beings like everyone else. Young people are being drawn in large numbers to the Obama campaign because of his message of hope and unity and change. That's all fine and good, but what happens when he fails? What happens if he can't actualy recreate the kingdom of heaven here on earth? A commentator I was reading had this to say:
"The 'politics of meaning,' which emerged from the Kennedy years and has now resurfaced with Obama as its empty vessel of hope, is doomed to disappoint because it asks more from politics than politics can deliver."
Politicians, including Obama, are going to disappoint. Millennials, and all Christians who expect to change human history through seizing political power, take warning.
Posted by: Eric | February 5, 2008 12:42 PM
"The 'politics of meaning,' which emerged from the Kennedy years and has now resurfaced with Obama as its empty vessel of hope, is doomed to disappoint because it asks more from politics than politics can deliver."
What about the politics of dancing?
I'm going to vomit on the politics of joy"--Tom Hayden
Posted by: cheyenne bodie | February 5, 2008 2:35 PM
Millenials are waking up to the fact that although politics isn't everything, it also isn't nothing. I agree that politics won't usher in the kingdom of heaven, but it still matters what "we the people" do together. I think Christians have a legitimate voice that speaks to all, Christian or not. That being said, the Ronsvales have shown (see www.emptytomb.org) the potential to eliminate the worst effects of world poverty if all Christians tithed.
Posted by: uccgus | February 7, 2008 3:46 PM
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