What is it with Gen X?

In the 1960s and early '70s, baby-boomer university students marched in the streets to get Australia out of Vietnam. In the '80s, the university students of Generation X marched in the streets to protest the removal of their free bus fares.

Spot the difference?

For the past forty years baby boomers have paid significant amounts of taxation that went, in part, to ensure that any of their Gen X children who wanted to go to university could. Those same children now complain that they do not want to be taxed to support ageing parents.

Spot the difference?

Civil society fought in the '60s to assert itself in relation to governments and businesses. Through the protest movement, government decisions - such as Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War - were reversed or altered in response to public pressure. Freedom of information was guaranteed, parts of the natural environment were saved, better urban planning was forced, inequalities were addressed and overall accountability was increased.

But this is falling apart, organisations which fought those battles are closing down, and that power which was exercised then is slowly being resumed by governments and business. Why?

Now formally retired, as a volunteer I hold positions on the executive or planning bodies of four different organisations, I am a spokesperson for two, and a patron of another four. Yet, despite knowledge of at least some of my activity (or perhaps because of it), representatives from three other organisations of which I hold membership have asked me to nominate for executive positions this year. Given my age, one might expect a younger person would have been approached.

But despite awareness of their desperation - and sympathy for it - I turned down the requests because of my already heavy load. That is a common refrain of community activists. Before the end of the year I anticipate there will be more requests. So what is going on?

All these groups have two things in common:

• the preponderance of baby-boomers and some of the generation that preceded them, and
• dearth of those belonging to Generation X.

While many baby-boomers remain in their organisations and community groups out of loyalty, an increasing number does not have the energy or time to continue in leadership roles. Apart from simply growing old, more and more of them are taking on caring roles, either for their parents or their grandchildren, and they are wanting out.

It is not uncommon to find 80 year olds looking to hand on the baton to someone younger. The only problem is Generation X (the definition of which varies, but which I am accepting as being those born between 1965 and 1984) has failed to enter the race. There is no-one to accept the baton.

If they ever were involved at all, the members of Gen X have become spectators to the events of our society.

The consequence is that some of these groups are fading away. One of those that approached me has now effectively disbanded itself at a state level. Some of them continue to exist in name only, failing to hold AGMs, but hoping that by keeping the organisation on life-support someone younger will revive them.

So what is it with Gen X?  Why have they chosen to be bystanders?  Did the baby-boomers do something in the rearing of this generation to create this?  Perhaps it was in the social activism of the baby-boomers. They were out there changing the world, and as the battles were fought and the problems addressed, their children came to know that there was no need for them to be involved.

But another explanation is the economic system of which they were a part. The advertising industry gave out a message that they could and should have it all. The advent of competition policy saw another message which is that there is always another offer in the bag, so don’t commit to the first thing that comes along. It looks like Gen X is still waiting, looking for the next big offer to sweep them off their feet.

With the upcoming triple-whammy of climate change, peak oil and population growth, and the social dislocation likely to result, who will be applying the pressure on politicians to take on the necessary responsibilities and action?

The good news is that the first of Generation Y are just beginning to become politically involved. However, this to be on an issue by issue basis, rather than supporting group infrastructure and shared history to maintain rolling campaigns.

So will Gen X take action, and urgently?  Most likely, by the time Gen X realises there is a problem to be solved, many of the groups that had the knowledge and resources to assist them will have folded.

The cost to society will be inestimable when so many of these groups no longer exist.