Although conditions differ by country, the spark behind these protests lies in both the real and the fitfully imagined: high housing prices, food inflation, lack of good jobs and failing education systems are not figments of their imaginations.
asserted
prices → differ → imaginations
At the same time, cries of poverty seem a bit overwrought for a generation that enjoys the most wealth in history and, in the West at least, their protest seems to stem from being raised to think they were special, only to find out that the world is not such a welcoming place.
asserted
world → seem → West
The new generational war is fueled by a deep pessimism among those under 40 about the future.
asserted
war → fuel → future
This, noted a 2022 Pew study, is particularly marked in Japan, France and Italy, with majorities of adult parents seeing a bleaker future for the next generation by more than three to one.
asserted
majorities → note → one
The United States also does poorly with 72 per cent, while Canada does even worse, clocking in at 75 per cent.
asserted
Canada → do → cent
The kindling for the current protests appears to lie with premonitions about their chances of enjoying anything like the success and security of their parents.
asserted
kindling → appear → parents
These concerns feed a radicalization that is spreading worldwide and could undermine the last remnants of liberal democracy.
uncertain
that → feed → democracy
Indeed, according to Statistics Canada, hope about the future declined among Canadians aged 15 to 29 by about 15 percentage points in just five years between 2016 to 2021/2022.
uncertain
hope → accord → 2021/2022
The percentage of young adults who were highly satisfied with their lives also declined.
asserted
who → decline → lives
For many, housing defines the divergence between the generations.
asserted
housing → define → generations
Younger people are already way behind their parents in terms of buying a home in virtually every country.
asserted
people → buy → country
According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the rate of homeownership among young adults aged 25–34 was 45.4 per cent for generation X, but has dropped to 37 per cent for millennials, the generation now entering family formation years.
uncertain
rate → accord → years
Much the same can be seen in Canada.
asserted
same → see → Canada
Millennials, notes Statistics Canada, had a lower rate of homeownership in 2021 (49.9 per cent) than their gen-X counterparts in 2006 (56.2 per cent) and baby boomer counterparts in 1991 (55.9 per cent).
asserted
Canada → note → 1991
In Toronto, notes the Hub, the proportion of young homeowners in a single-detached home fell from 32.7 per cent in 1991 to 19.4 per cent in 2021.
asserted
proportion → note → 2021
In Vancouver, it dropped from 36.3 per cent to just 12.2 per cent.
asserted
it → drop → cent
Many millennials, some of whom are well into their 30’s, are simply failing to launch as true independent adults.
asserted
some → fail → adults
In 2021, 16.3 percent of Millennials aged 25 to 39 were living with their parents, roughly double the 8.2 percent recorded for Baby Boomers at the same age in 1991.
asserted
percent → age → 1991
This is particularly evident in ultra-expensive Toronto and Vancouver, where the percentage failing to launch has doubled since the 1990s.
asserted
percentage → fail → 1990s
Some of this can be traced to government policies that seek to limit suburban development, as illustrated by demographer Wendell Cox’s recent housing affordability study.
asserted
that → trace → study
“There’s a whole generation being left behind,” Hamilton, Ont., builder Dave Knight told me.
asserted
Knight → ’ → me
“Unless you come from a family with money, you have it tough.”
asserted
it → come → money
Equally critical, young people, particularly in the high-income countries, fear the rise of artificial intelligence and robots.
asserted
people → fear → intelligence
In the U.S., notes Pew, 73 per cent of people under 30 think artificial intelligence (AI) means fewer jobs in the future.
asserted
intelligence → note → future
The percentage who are more concerned than excited about its increased use in their daily lives has almost doubled since 2021.
asserted
who → increase → 2021
Similarly, in Canada, where, the percentage of young people 18 to 34 who fear AI’s impact is roughly the same at 69 per cent.
asserted
who → fear → cent
Many younger Canadian workers, particularly college graduates, believe AI will affect their long-term career opportunities.
asserted
AI → believe → opportunities
Young people have reason to be worried.
asserted
people → have → reason
As of March, unemployment among Canadians aged 15-24 hit 13.8 per cent, according to Statistics Canada, essentially double the overall rate that month of 6.7 per cent.
uncertain
unemployment → age → cent
An August report released by Toronto-Dominion Bank suggested this reflected in particular a decline in jobs often occupied by youth in accommodation, food services and retail trade.
uncertain
this → release → accommodation
Yet, not all the current youth angst can be traced to housing or AI.
asserted
angst → trace → housing
There are also considerable cultural factors, largely in how young people are being educated.
asserted
people → be → ?
In the U.S., as in Canada, left-leaning agitation appears to be part of the agenda, often pushed by teachers’ unions.
asserted
agitation → lean → unions
Among Canadians under 35, 48 per cent of males and 40 per cent of females, were proud of their nationality, noted a 2024 Angus Reid study.
asserted
study → note → nationality
In contrast, when it came to those aged 55 and over, 68 per cent of men and 71 per cent of women considered themselves proud Canadians.
asserted
themselves → come → women
Equally troubling, many young people have also lost faith in the economic system, sparking a global resurgence of support for socialism.
asserted
people → lose → socialism
These conditions are ideal for the rising socialist movement.
asserted
conditions → rise → movement
As the old German theorist Karl Marx would have expected, if the young feel their futures constrained, it undermines faith in the market system.
asserted
it → expect → system
According to a Campus Reform poll, 62 per cent of Americans under 30 have a positive view of socialism, while 34 per cent now back the more authoritarian communist alternative.
uncertain
cent → accord → alternative
Canada, which is further down this road, may get there faster.
uncertain
which → get → road
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
