GEN X vs GEN Z

VERA LEE, opinion editor

Ageneration gap is the difference in opinions that people of different collective generations have. There is an ever-growing chasm between current high school students and the parents who raise them. All of which seem to stem from technology.

Generation X, or people who grew up in the 80s and 90s, are characterized by growing up in a time of global tension. Gen X were children during the Cold War, the fight against communism and the constant threat of nuclear warfare. They were adults when the global war on terror began. For fun, kids during this time might have gone to the arcade to play some “Pac-Man” or have used their at-home-gaming system to play “Super Mario” or “Sonic the Hedgehog.” They may have also watched 90s sitcoms like “Friends” or the initial release of “Titanic,” the highest-grossing film that decade. Popular artists during those decades included Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston. There also began an introduction and reintroduction of different music genres like punk rock and gangsta rap, such as Green Day and Dr. Dre.

In comparison, Generation Z, people born between 1996 and 2012, consider the trends and lives of the people in the past as retro or classic. Characterized by their tech-savviness and living their childhood during a recession, Gen Z has grown up to be both addicted to their mobile phones and budget conscious. According to Pew Research Center, Gen Z are also growing up to be the most racially and ethnically diverse generation with only around 52 percent of them being of non-Hispanic white origin.

According to the Economic Times, 98 percent of Gen Z own a phone with a majority of them spending more than four hours on it a day. In their free time, Gen Z are likely to play PC games like “Among Us” and “Fortnite,” watch shows on Netflix and Hulu or interact with social media apps like TikTok and Instagram. Gen Z is a generation that focuses a lot on mental health which may be due to comparing themselves to people online and the current political climate, with 75 percent of them citing school shootings as a cause of stress. Ironically, although Gen Z can stay connected with social media, they are often referred to as the “loneliest” generation because of their isolated behavior and undeveloped social skills. Because of social media, Gen Z are also more likely to be exposed to sexual content and predators at earlier ages.

Pew Research Center has also found that Gen Z are the most educated generation with 57 percent of 18-21 year-olds enrolled in a college. This may be due to the fact that Gen Z are more likely to be children of college graduates. Because more people are going to college than previous generations, there exists a greater competition to attend prestigious universities. Younger generations are also more progressive on issues like racial discrimination, climate change and LGBTQ+ rights. They are also generally more comfortable using gender-neutral pronouns and believe there is a need for societal and systemic change.

TikTok has ended the stigma surrounding thrifting and introduced a new form of sustainable fashion, but, ultimately, its negatives have trumped its benefits. Thrift stores originated as a way to make a profit off of secondhand clothes that most people did not want anymore. Their prices reflected their original demographic, people at or below the poverty line. Now, however, an increase in foot traffic has caused their prices to spike. The problem lies with hyperconsumption by those who can afford to find clothes elsewhere, but donation rates do not reflect this new trend. This inflation of prices has completely defeated the original cause of their creation, to provide poorer people with clothing and other luxuries that are usually outside of their price range. “Thrift

Over the last two years, the rising generation has begun to define what this decade’s fashion culture will be. With the rise of ethical awareness in fashion brands and overconsumption at an all-time high, many fashion-centric people have turned towards thrifting. The art of recycling old clothes and repurposing them in this new age of fashion has allowed a decline in fast fashion and clothes in landfills while opening up the accessibility of clothes in lower-income homes.

The year 2020 was famous for many things, but between quarantine and “Among Us” gameplay, many “GenZers” became familiar with Shein, a website geared towards selling trending clothes for low prices. The online site mass-produced micro trends in a budget fit for teens: under 30 dollars. In the last two years, many have uncovered Shein’s unethical means of production, yet no stores have gotten wise to the fact that there are covetable, profitable gems lurking in their trove of textiles,” says The Wall Street Journal.

What used to be a sustainable source of secondhand clothing has led to an increase in fast fashion, usually characterized as being cheap, mass-produced clothing that has a high environmental and social impact. The price inflation of thrift stores has caused many people to turn to fast-fashion sites like Shein, a company known for violating human rights and several labor regulations. These clothes are often made overseas where there are fewer labor laws that minimize ethical and environmental concerns. The clothing industry is one of the worst polluters with it being responsible for 4 percent of greenhouse-gas emissions, a rate that is the same as Germany, alternatives seemed to arise for the younger generation until the revival of retro clothing began to surge. TikTok’s popularization of ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s fashion brought the art of thrifting into the mainstream. It has become an ethical and financial lifesaver. In a 2022 article by The Guardian writer Dilys Williams, it is relented that “most returns end up in landfill because it costs more to put them back in circulation.”

Seeing as many of the clothes popularized on the company’s site pull from vintage looks, shopping locally at second-hand shops gave people access to authentic pieces with a guilt-free conscience. While thrifting is overtaking Shein, many argue that it cannot compare with the company’s online capabilities. The store’s growth is directly linked to its accessibility to everyone via the internet, though thrifting seems to flourish in urban areas surrounded by consignment shops with quality clothes. The argument falls flat as apps and websites like Depop and Poshmark exist. Both sites allow people to resell vintage and retro clothing alongside more modern pieces without feeding into fast fashion. Although some resellers can charge high prices, the money is spent more on quality than quantity. Some people have taken more direct methods, offering to shop for people without access to thrift stores. They open up their social media platforms to those who struggle with finding looks or do not have the resources available nearby. With so many resources, thrifting has allowed for a rise in sustainability and ethical mindsets in younger generations. One can only hope that as the ‘20s continue with the recycling of clothes, the fast fashion enterprise can finally die.

France and the United Kingdom combined. Not only that, their dyes pollute rivers, and the synthetic fibers they are made with deplete and degrade the soil. Thrift store prices are also driven up by resellers, people who purchase items in bulk and sell them for higher prices elsewhere. While this process doesn’t have the ethical and environmental issues fast fashion has, they cause prices to go up and affordable plus-size options, which are usually hard to find, become even rarer.

Thrifting has ruined thrift stores by making prices skyrocket and limiting options for those who really need them, as well as causing more traffic to fast fashion. A harmless trend has suddenly become responsible for multiple environmental and ethical concerns, ultimately profiting the rich while harming the poor.