The Post-Parkland Generation: Who Are We Now?

Throughout history, major events have shaped the American psyche. This has held true from the early years of the Great Depression, to and through the numerous terrorist events of the 21^st century. Today, it appears that perhaps more than ever, the lasting effect of these horrific events are shaping the political opinions at an ever-younger age, giving an entirely new meaning to the notion of “coming of age.”

In my lifetime, I’ve never had the luxury of feeling totally safe while going to school. Since 2001, when I first entered kindergarten at age 5, there have been 50 mass school shootings in the U.S.. (ABC News) This averages over three school shootings every year, and totals 141 student deaths. It can be said that no other generation has had to confront the issue of life or death in quite the same way, and no other generation has had the volume of violent shootings and horrific imagery to influence their political views.

Political scientists agree that the younger a person is when they experience a tragic event, the more likely he/she is to be influenced politically by such events; this aspect of political socialization is referred to as “the generation effect.” (Pearson) Today’s generation of youth, (persons aged 18-34) – also known as “the millennials” – are at the onset of developing political opinion. These same millennials are also confronting a uniquely American phenomenon with school shootings, such as those which have occurred at Columbine, Sandy Hook, and now, Parkland.

The question remains: Do these catastrophic shootings turn millennials into liberal or conservative adults on the issue of gun control?

Amongst millennials, the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School seem to have risen as the new faces of gun reform. Students have put their energy and determination into voice and action. As millennials reach political maturity, their concern for public morality and school safety with respect to gun reform is rapidly taking shape. “The only reason that we’ve gotten so far is that we are not afraid of losing money, we’re not afraid of getting re-elected, we have nothing to lose. The only thing we have to gain at this point is our safety,” says Delaney Tarr, a senior at the MSD high school. (Quartz Media)

The actions of the MSD students offer a lens into the future political persuasions of this collective group. Since the aftermath of the Parkland shooting, MSD students have protested the Florida State legislative offices by the hundreds, participated in one-on-one open discussions with President Trump, engaged State legislature from both sides of the table – republican and democrat – at a nationally-televised “Town Hall” discussion on gun reform. And, it doesn’t stop there – on March 24th, students and gun reform supporters from around the country will demonstrate in Washington to bring their message to the doorstep of the White House. These actions have led many to believe that now, quite literally, the future of safer schools is in the hands of the millennials.

Sources Links:

The astonishing power of Stoneman Douglas students, in their own words

http://abcnews.go.com/US/school-shootings-columbine-numbers/story?id=36833245

https://www.crimetraveller.org/2015/10/columbine-effect/

4 Responses to "The Post-Parkland Generation: Who Are We Now?"

Carlin O'Neill says:

February 27, 2018 at 2:19 pm

Hi Lizzy,

I think that a movement like this will not necessarily later shape the parties that students and young adults of our generation will join, I simply think that this issue will remain universal across our age demographic regardless of political association. At this point, kids from all walks of life and all socio-economic strata hold some fear in going to school because the risk of school shooting and gun violence has become so ingrained in our lives due to the sheer amount of instances that it has occurred throughout our academic careers. Even if a young adult’s political views grow to be conservative or liberal as they mature and they register as supporters of a certain party, I believe that the violent climate that our generation has grown up in in which school gun violence is a harsh reality will force party alignments regarding this specific issue to lessen. The generations who are leading our government now never faced as large of a hazard when going to school as students do today, so perhaps the more personal link between our generation and the school gun violence will be the impetus for change in the future of gun control laws. Like you said in your post, students across the nation have already taken charge and organized large scale demonstrations to voice their opinions by banding together in person and across social media, and I hope that this may indicate a future restructuring of gun culture when members of our generation take public office. Thanks for your post!
Sophia Harrison says:

February 27, 2018 at 2:36 pm

Lizzy,
Thank you for your post. I think you did a really good job at connecting recent events with material from the book, while generating a question that poses and will continue to pose a lot of debate within the United States. While you would assume that the millennials would be more in favor of gun control, past polling suggested that people younger than 30 in the U.S. were no more liberal on gun control than their parents or grandparents. Frank Newport, editor-in-chief of Gallup asked the under 30 crowned if the U.S should make gun laws more strict, less strict, or keep them the same. On average, people between the ages of 18-29 were one percentage point more likely to say gun laws should be more strict that the overall national average of 57 percent. Another poll by the Pew Research Center found similar results. However, Pew did find significant differences between millennials and older generations on two gun control proposals regarding the ban of assault style rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines. Both the Republican and Democrats of the millennials were more conservative when it came to those bans. This is interesting data because in the aftermath of the Parkland shooting, it seems as though millennials are the biggest advocates of gun control. However, the students speaking out might not be representative of what a whole generation feels. Perhaps millennials are following their parents beliefs on gun control because family is one of the biggest influences in shaping children’s attitudes. It will be interesting to see how everything plays out and what future polling data will show. Maybe the rise of independent student voices will encourage other young voters to stray away from their parents beliefs.
Paige Jordan says:

February 28, 2018 at 9:52 am

Lizzy, thank you for your post. The question you raise as to whether or not experiencing a traumatic event, such as a school shooting, at a young age therefore influences your future political perspective is indeed thought-provoking. As you have mentioned, the students of Marjory Stoneman have become the most recent faces of the topic of gun control. In fact, hundreds of other high-school students from schools throughout Florida have marched to Parkman to both pay respect and represent the larger issue. It is true that today’s generation of teenagers, especially those in Florida, have lost friends, family, and peers to the mass shootings that have recently occurred. Because of this direct relationship to such a personal loss, I do see correlation with today’s society and our perspective of gun control. Due to the tragedies, as well as the fear instilled because of them, the future is most definitely at the hands of those sensitive to the topic. For our generation’s core beliefs have been shifted to include the effects of gun violence, the further our political socialization has thus been influenced as well. Regardless of political association, as Carlin mentions, there is an underlying understanding between our generation that gun violence be an issue to be considered distinct from any specific party. That being said, I believe that as the country’s youth grows up to be the policy makers, there will definitely be a focus on safety, specifically within schools.
Austin Marsilia says:

February 28, 2018 at 7:18 pm

Elizabeth, you and I can agree that mass shootings and murder is a terrible atrocity that this country is familiar with. However, you fail to mention that firearms have been ingrained in American culture since its founding, making the issue of gun control extremely sensitive. Personally, I believe strict gun laws are futile due to the fact that if a bad person wants to commit a crime, he or she will always find a way outside the law. We as Americans need to defend ourselves with education and training rather than believing that a law will stop a criminal, or that a poster that says “gun free zone” will stop a mass shooting. Believe it or not, the United States does not have the highest number of murders annually of developed nations. Brazil is represented in the number one spot by 19 of its cities making the list for highest murder rate per capita followed by Mexico’s 8. In both countries, guns are strictly regulated, but criminal homicide does not stop. Personally, I do not know of a viable solution to the problem of mass shootings in the United States, but I will play devils advocate and offer the following solution: arming teachers and other school officials. This would allow for the first responders to be on site when the criminal decides to break the law and inflict casualties upon the civilian population.
Overall, your post is well written and sparks discussion. However, I would have liked for you to offer your own personal solution to the issue of violence in the United States.

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