Jonah Hinebaugh | The Crow’s Nest
By Baron Reichenbach
For years, members of older generations have swept aside the opinions and ideas of younger ones with a condescending aloofness, using the argument that virtually anyone younger than them is childish and inexperienced.
Many of them have backed up their sociopolitical opinions with a very limited sense of tradition on how the “real world” works. In many cases, they defend the usage of slurs and other offensive language and accuse younger and more socially liberal populations of being “too sensitive.”
But, oh, how the tables have turned.
As many of the Baby Boomer generation cling to antiquated ideals, a new phrase has gained memetic status, media attention and a Wikipedia page: “OK Boomer.”
Millennials and Generation Z, whose voices were once dismissed with the derogatory term “snowflake,” have developed their own catchy response to the opinions of Boomer-age conservatives. It serves as a tongue-in-cheek remark, calling out homophobia, racism, climate change denial and other politically conservative views common to older populations.
However, it is distinctly not a slur. The term “Baby Boomer” has been in use for decades to describe the generation resulting from the post-World War II baby boom.
And it is not even remotely the new N-word – as asserted by some Boomers on Twitter. The N-word is a racial slur and one of the most offensive terms in the English language, and always has been. Boomer is the shortened form of a legitimate term in social science.
Overreactions to the spreading use of “OK Boomer” are rife with hypocrisy and similar false equivalencies. Boomers on the receiving end of the phrase who may have defended their own offensive language by labeling their critics “sensitive snowflakes” absolutely lose their minds over something astronomically less harmful, to the point that some companies are actively discouraging or banning the use of the phrase.
OK Boomers, calm down.
The general use of the phrase is aimed specifically at harmful conservativism, in some ways more so than the actual age of the receiving party. I’ve personally seen it used in response to conservatives of my own age. In these cases, it served as shorthand for “your opinions are behind the times and/or unscientific.”
Also of relevance is the fact that Boomers exist in a position of economic and political strength relative to Millenials and Gen Z-ers. Our voices are just beginning to have a sway in politics, while the current president is literally a Boomer. This two-word pair is an acceptable rebellion against the elements of a generation that are heavily to blame for the current political and environmental mess. Which, ultimately, will be on the shoulders of younger, more progressive and science-literate generations to clean up. And the help of any progressive minds is welcome in doing so, regardless of age.
So, no, this is not the end of intergenerational friendliness. This is an expression of how done younger generations are with the antiquated and condescending attitudes of an older one. It is a rejection of the false notion that age correlates with a logical or moral high ground, which I sincerely hope will transcend generational cohorts as the next one is born.
If you use your age to empower yourself to do good with your experience, more power to you. But if you use it as an excuse to be condescending, you will only be offered this simple phrase.
For those who remain reluctant to endorse saying “OK Boomer,” the more age-agnostic “OK billionaire” is gaining traction as an alternative, which focuses more on the harmful political influence of the extremely wealthy.
Actually, I’ve seen it used in response to perfectly innocent comments like, “I had to Google that term lol” replied to with “whatever, OK BOOMER” … so… yeah, it’s being used as an insult. Not akin to the infamount N-word, but an insultimate nonetheless.
You actually used it as an insult right there in your article so, yeah, it’s an insult.