Narcissistic, ungrateful, and spoiled; is this an honest assessment of the usurping generation, or just some blown-out cliché older generations have used to shroud the unknown possibilities of the Millennials? It has been a lasting tradition for the past generation to criticize those being raised to adulthood.

The generational group born between 1982 to 2000 is classified as being part of the Millennial Age. This will be the age that either rises from the ashes of the Baby Boomers (1946-1964) and Generation X (1965-1976) or crumples against the tests of time.

The idea that Millennials are a gaggle of narcissistic airheads without a sense of the world around them is painted with a broad and wrong brushstroke. Though it can be argued that some Millennials fall under a category of narcissism, in all fairness, this can be claimed about any generation as far as time will allow us to explore.

To say that the idea of belittling a generation in its infancy is new would simply be a ludicrous lie. That being said, it can be said that the generation of the Millennials has been met with intense assessment that is often asinine by its own design.

There is an old passage that reads, “He who is without sin may cast the first stone.” With Baby Boomers and Generation Xers with a stockpile of stones at their side, we at the Pioneer ask for the harsh reality of history to be shone on those in question.

The members of the Baby Boomers, as well as the Generation Xers, will note that the advantages that they took for granted are some of the uphill, uproarious battles that the “so-called” narcissistic, self-centered generation have to face. An article from the Chicago Tribune stated, “Boomers let a federal debt, as a share of the economy, double from where it was in the 1970’s.”

Essentially, it’s the equivalent of eating everything in the college dorm fridge, dirtying every dish in the damn cabinet, leaving it in the sink, and then yelling at the youngest member of the house for the invasion of festering ants.

From time to time, it’s safe to assume that everyone will hear about the faults of their generation in full, excruciating detail. Generation X and the Baby Boomers have their soapbox at the ready under their desk at their cubicle job, ready to profess their aging ideology. They may never take into consideration that the Millennials are only learning from the mistakes of those who were before.

With the rise in political and cultural actions across the world, the cavalcade of critics has been met with recipients of both Gen X and Millennials, with little turnout of the Boomers. Typically set in their ways, it’s easy to see how unsettling it is for the generation at present and those coming with time to work in opposition to the powers in place…but that does not change the fact that change is what is happening whether you agree with it or disagree.

Change is necessary. Change is vital for the lives of the people and the life of the American idea. If we were set in our ways from the beginning, the dreams of liberty and freedom the way that it was brought forth would have died as soon as our forefathers passed.

Rising technology that promotes connectedness and globalization are some of the products Millennials have in their arsenal to take on the challenges of this tumultuous world–a world that has allowed the archaic ideas of xenophobia and blinding racism, and needs the raised voices of an objective generation.

People of a likemind are not meant to be divided by the class identification of generations; however, seeing as how that is what this has come to be, we must live by it.

It came to me as I was writing this editorial where the issue lies: it’s the fear of the unknown. Throughout the chords of time, people have always feared, always hated what they did not understand. But that is not the way to live.

We grow as individuals and we grow as a civilization whenever we toss our differences to the wayside and stand on the grounds of understanding. The spun, drug out sayings that state, “Millennials are nothin’ but selfie taking freeloaders,” or “You old bastards don’t understand and never will” cease to matter when we focus on the good of the people and the good of mankind.

Like the beatniks and hippies before, we are a generation distracted by the shuffle of those losing what they hold dear while attempting to make sense of those former values. We are a generation willing to stand against oppression and the status quo that  systematically crushes individualism among the masses. To give us a chance instead of criticizing what is not known would give us the capability to change what was once wrong to something for the common good.

All this intact, it cannot be said in full validity that all those older than the Millennial age feel all the same. Much like we cannot hold true that the members of our generation do not despise our morale standpoints. But, that’s the funny thing about history, it stops for no soul and is almost entirely unapologetic.

Larry Pitts, along with his wife Peggy, have always held an unwavering, unapologetic stance on what they believe is right. Working in the real-estate business for over forty years, the couple has seen the times of conservatism and progressivism change before their eyes. Though they are members of the Baby Boom, Larry and Peggy have nothing but high hopes for the path that the youngest of our kind are going.

“I have a great faith that the Millennials will be and’ll do great things for this world,” Larry Pitts said. “They are the ones out there fighting for the rights of the people. They are the ones connecting with one another to try to make a difference. Without them, how would the future look?”

Progress is never an easy road but it is always necessary. To hold on to conservative ideas and bury our heads in the sands of time, hoping they will never move, is only a band-aid to the gash of the festering problems left before us all. Millennials are the sounds of marching on the Capitol, and those who speak out against the oppression of others. To ignore them is to ignore the tides that are forever turning.