Don’t cut down Gen Z before they bloom

TAMMY MERRETT Program Director ANGIE TROUT Office Manager

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There is the old adage that each new generation is lazier and more privileged than the one before. Gen Z is no stranger to being told we are lazy, spoiled, and sensitive. But if you think about it historically for a minute, there is an overwhelming amount of evidence to prove this false.

Interestingly enough, since ancient Greek times, each new generation has been accused of being worse than the older generations. A BBC article written in 2017, outlines how humans have always complained about the younger generations, with evidence dating back at least 2,000 years. One example is a 2016 quote on the millennial generation “out-of-touch hipster who spend too much on coffee and too little on facial hair care” compared to a 1771 quote about the newest generation then calling them “a race of effeminate, self-admiring, emaciated fribbles…”

Gen Z is not worse simply because we are young. We are simply different from our older generations, and that is just fine. Why would we differentiate generations if not to compare them?

We at the Alestle would argue that our generation is not any lazier than other generations. Many of us on staff are working multiple jobs to put ourselves through school, while also maintaining grades and publishing a weekly newspaper. We see our friends studying for days on a single test, or caring for ailing grandparents or family.

Take SIUE for example, many of the workers in dining, housing, or building services that keep SIUE healthy and safe are student employees who are also working while in school. Student employees are subjected to the whims of the administration and management, allowing very little autonomy in a place that preaches inclusivity and progress.

While Gen Z has grown up with technology, many of us realize how terrible being exposed to the internet so young was for us, and want to make changes for the next generation. Our generation has seen an uptick in school shootings, where our fellow students are gunned down while simply trying to learn. Yet we are told that we are weak and “snowflakes.” Gen Z is not better or worse than any other generation. We are simply facing different challenges.

Stop blaming entire generations, especially when the presided faults being placed on the new generation is not the fault of that generation, but instead the failings of the older generations to teach and protect.

Generation blame is not an effective way to motivate young people. It is understandable to compare generations— humans have always done that and always will— but it is not fair to the younger generations to cut them down before they have a chance to bloom.

It is not all men, but even one man is too many

WOLFE opinion editor

Last Saturday, I woke up to an e-Lert about a woman being abducted from her home and sexually assaulted by someone she knew. I wasn’t even on campus, but I still felt scared. After a minute, I became angry. Why is this still happening to us?

I chose to come to SIUE not only for its proximity to my hometown or the option to have an air fryer in my dorm room, but also because according to SIUE, the campus is ranked ninth nationally in the Safety of College Campuses and second within Illinois.

I thought that if I came here I would feel safer, and usually I do. I get the odd bout of anxiety here and there about sounds in the woods, but I just walk faster.

that are tested every semester.

The only critique I have on their resources is that the classes should be open to everyone. People of all genders would benefit from knowing how to protect themselves.

I would also like to see more cameras around campus to ensure our safety. Former SIUE Police Chief Kevin Schmoll mentioned that he wanted to put more around campus, but was unable to do so because of lack of funding.

After receiving this alert though, that feeling of safety was basically shattered. I feel deeply for the woman who had to experience this, but my question is: Why did she have to?

had my location.

Why are we still giving advice to women on how to stay safe? Why aren’t we condemning the people who are doing these attacks?

Ask any woman you know, or someone who was socially raised as one. Most of us already have routines we do or plans we have to stay safe.

I keep something sharp on me. I check underneath my car because I’m scared my Achilles tendon will be cut so I can’t run away, and then, lastly, I check my back seat so I won’t be choked to death.

already in our lives. According to the Department of Justice, 73 percent of sexual assaults are committed by non-strangers. Although sexual assault and rape affect women at a disproportionate rate, we are not the only ones who are affected by this.

According to the CDC, “Over half of women and almost 1 in 3 men have experienced sexual violence involving physical contact during their lifetimes.”

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SIUE actually does a really great job of offering resources to people who may be scared. There are several self-defense classes offered to women almost every week, as well as blue police buttons to press all across campus

At the end of the email we all received after the incident, there was a long list of ways to try to prevent attacks like these from happening. They were all things my mother had already taught me by the age of 13.

She told me not to go to gas stations alone after dark, not to be outside by myself past dark and to always make sure someone

I shouldn’t have to. What we should be focusing on is teaching people from a young age not to harm others. Instead of telling women not to wear “provocative” clothes, we should be telling men not to rape.

Although not all men commit these crimes, we can not afford to believe this when it could be any man. The email gave us ways to stay safe, but even if we already do these things, this doesn’t protect us from people

The problem is that these statistics are only mostly accurate due to the fact that many people who have experienced sexual assault or rape never come forward. I personally know several people who never came forward and never got justice.

If you have ever been sexually assaulted, I am very sorry that you ever had to go through something like that. You did not deserve it.

Instead of telling us how to prevent being attacked, we need to get to the root of the problem: the people who are being taught that it’s okay to attack others. Stop blaming the victim and start blaming the perpetrators.