Gen Z Might Not Be Weak, But Our Social Change Is

By Iyore Ip ’29

I’ve often been told by adults that my generation is by far the weakest. There is no denying that Gen Z was hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic—lockdown occurred during some of our most formative years Furthermore, the American Psychological Association (APA) reports that more than half of Gen Z experiences poor mental health, the worst reported mental health thus far. Our generation has also grown up with unprecedented access to the internet and, with that, a broadened view of the world. In the same study, researchers found that topics related to mental health and current events cause Gen Z more stress compared to other generations. Gen Z’s politics have been shaped by their access to the greater world. Pew Research Center found in a 2024 study that 66% of Gen Z American voters aged eighteen to twenty-four lean Democratic, compared to 54% of voters between the ages of sixty and eighty leaning Republican. In the study by the APA, it was found that topics relating to mental health and current events bring Gen Z more stress compared to other generations. However, while Gen Z might be increasingly troubled by current events and have felt so during a time of rising conservative values, I believe that we have one undeniable weakness: our ability to enact social change.

When you look at previous generations, it becomes clear that Gen Z lacks the ability to form social movements. Take ACT UP’s movement from the late 1980s to the 1990s: ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) formed in response to the government’s refusal to address the AIDS crisis and possessed a strong young adult membership. Younger ACT UP members shaped how the organization protested. ACT UP member Maxine Wolf reflected that young members “were media generation people who had grown up with television and multimedia. They were well aware…that there would be TV cameras present and what these cameras would be looking at.” ACT UP’s success and legacy were shaped by protests remembered as distinct and radical for the way in which they grabbed attention in a time when people were inclined to ignore the LGBTQ+ community during the AIDS crisis. ACT UP’s protests depended on direct action and often took the form of occupations and visually distinct actions. In comparison, Gen Z social movements lack the same organization and notoriety.

While ACT UP youth were defined by their relationship to television, Gen Z Americans’ foray into political activism is rooted in their relationship to social media. Movements such as Black Lives Matter, which gained popularity during the early 2020s, are spread through social media. The hashtags and posts with the phrases “Black Lives Matter” and “Free Palestine” seem to cheapen Gen Z’s activism. Gen Z’s resistance takes the form of a single image. All of us can recall certain images and phrases related to Black Lives Matter, pro-Palestine, and anti-ICE movements. However, how do those in power interpret these images? While these movements, like ACT UP’s demonstrations, are dependent on the number of views they receive, ACT UP’s protests were disruptive and distinct enough to attract attention from the news and government. Seeing a physically distinct protest on the news is different from seeing a trending post. Furthermore, the prevalence of social media posts makes the environment in which young people’s political posts are heard much more cluttered.

While Gen Z might have grown up with more knowledge of social media compared to other generations, social media can be, and is, accessed by a large number of people, especially in the U.S. ACT UP’s actions directly opposed the government’s silence on the AIDS crisis, but now even the White House has a social media account that, for better or worse, they love to post on. For every liberal Gen Z influencer, there is a conservative foil. Conservative organizations like the Daily Wire and Turning Point U.S.A. also use social media in a far more organized way than Gen Z.

When it comes to Gen Z’s ability to enact social change, especially in the US, the best thing that we can do is to take a page out of the books of past social movements. Social media can raise awareness of current issues, but to create change, we can’t rely on a single post. Part of why ACT UP’s demonstrations garnered so much attention was their physical impact. A sit-in or lie-in can create a physical disruption. You can see a protest’s impact, and sadly, the number of views a single post has doesn’t carry the same gravitas. It seems to me that if we want to make change, our generation must start making more change in our physical, day-to-day lives.