I’m a Zoomer who’s wholeheartedly proud to be an American — but sometimes it feels like I’m the only one.
In fact, poll after poll finds that my generation is markedly less patriotic than our predecessors.
It’s no wonder, considering we grew up in tumultuous political times and were never taught why we should take pride in our country.
A Gallup poll from last year found that, while four in 10 American adults overall say they are extremely proud to be an American, just a measly 18% of those aged 18 to 34 say the same.
Another survey from Democracy Fund’s voter study group found even more startling results. Three quarters of Gen Z say that the nation requires “significant change,” while two in three agree that “America is an unfair society.”
Perhaps worst of all, four in 10 Zoomers say that America’s Founding Fathers are better described as villains than heroes.
It’s a problem that should concern all Americans, given this is the next generation of leaders. And, considering that military recruitment is in crisis, it could even be a national security issue.
But is declining patriotism any wonder, given that civics literacy rates among young people are dismal — and dropping?
According to the latest data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which tests eighth graders nationwide for proficiency in various subjects, history scores stand at the the lowest recorded level since the assessment began in 1994, and civics isn’t doing much better.
Just 14% of students hit the “proficient” mark in history, and only 22% did in civics.
How can a generation that doesn’t know their nation’s history or how the country functions take pride in being American? No wonder they’ve taken for granted just how fortunate they are to live in 21st century America.
Worse yet, from what I remember of my own US history courses, there was a lot more self-flagellation for our country’s shortcomings than celebration of our strengths.
According to generational expert Dr. Jean Twenge, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, Gen Z’s patriotism is part and parcel of their general pessimism and malaise.
“They are markedly more pessimistic about everything than Millennials were at the same age,” she told The Post. “The rise in young people’s pessimism parallels their rise in depression, which makes sense.”
Twenge is right. A staggering four in ten Zoomers agree with statements like “I can’t do anything right” and “my life is not useful.”
“They see their country negatively because they see almost everything negatively,” added Twenge, who is the author of “Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents―and What They Mean for America’s Future.”
“Depression is not just about emotions. It’s also about how you see the world, and depressed and unhappy people see the world more negatively.”
According to Twenge, helping young people get their mental health on track could also be key to bolstering their contentment as Americans.
“I don’t see Gen Z’s low patriotism and high pessimism turning around unless and until teens and young adults’ mental health improves,” she said. “I don’t think that will happen until they start spending less time on social media and more time with each other in person.”
The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silentsâand What They Mean for America’s Future.”
Learning about the world and current events through social media probably doesn’t help either.
A shocking third of young Americans now get their news from the Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok. That’s the platform where Osama Bin Laden’s Letter to America went viral, because young Americans were celebrating it.
Between arming them with smartphones and failing to arm them with adequate civics education, our culture has failed to produce the next generation of proud Americans.
And, while it’s easy to dump on ungrateful youth, that won’t solve anything.
We should spend less time blaming young people and more time empowering them with the knowledge required to underpin informed patriotism — for their sake and for our country’s sake.
