I've seen a lot of discussion about why millennials aren't coming out. Yes, they work and have young children. They are taking care of their elderly parents. All of these things are true and valid.

But also millennials have gone to the Occupy Wall Street protests, which accomplished nothing. The BLM protests, which accomplished nothing. The Women's March, which lol. I protested during all of these things only for our country to slide even further into capitalistic greed and corruption. When Bernie was running, someone we could get excited about, he was undermined by his own party.

Many millennials don't even believe their vote matters anymore in the face of gerrymandering and the electoral college.

I still want to believe protesting can effect change. Or frankly that American citizens have any power at all anymore. I'll be protesting on the 5th, but man is it hard to keep hope alive when our generation has been crushed under the establishment for our entire lives. Combine that with how oppressive the 40+ hour work week is and can you blame people for not protesting? Millennials barely even have the energy to do their laundry.

I'm not sure how to energize people. I'm not even sure how to energize myself. The Democratic party offers no leadership or hope whatsoever.

Please offer your local millennial (and me!) some hope. Please tell me we aren't just screaming into a void.

Originally Posted By u/duckhunt420 At 2025-03-31 11:47:11 AM | Source

(page 2) 33 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] LoveSausage@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Protest does work to a degree. But there is a dialectic change in that quantity begets quality when it becomes resistance.

[–] IrimeG@50501.chat 2 points 2 months ago

So you want everything solved by holding a sign in a park for an afternoon? Please. I just heard last week from Doria Robinson the ED of Urban Tilth who is greening Richmond CA and holding Chevron responsible for their egregious behavior in the community.

She talked about getting up every second Saturday to tend land and attend meetings and change minds for TWENTY YEARS. Now that’s activism. And she’s not a millennial with issues around instant gratification. And she’s making g beautiful lasting change for the people, the land, and the city.

So sorry this revolution will not be televised nor will it be sandwiched in a sound bite between Netflix binge sessions. SMH.

[–] Bosht@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago (2 children)

My thing is I literally don't have the time. I'm primary income for my household, my kids eat up whatever sick time I have, and these protests, as far as I've seen, are never on the weekends. There's the 'economic blackout' ones I participated in, but it's not like those are making an impact to these companies that have hordes of resources to keep them afloat. Idk man. I don't want to be the reason our democracy fails, but I don't want to be one of the idiots just sitting around on their ass either.

[–] bryrei@lemm.ee 0 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Almost all of the protests occur on Saturdays.

[–] Brutticus@lemm.ee 2 points 2 months ago

Some people work Saturday? Come on, guys, this isn't that hard. Millennials are in their 30s. People in their 30s have jobs and kids. Ive played DnD for 20 years, and if Ive learned anything in the last five years, its that getting five people in their 30s in the same room at the same time for 4 hours is impossible. One could argue capital made it harder by shattering communities, or forcing everyone to live paycheck to paycheck. Most of the millennials I know are politically engaged, many of them ranging from medicare for all leftist to blow up a pipeline leftist, but they have responsibilities.

load more comments (1 replies)

[–] tlekiteki@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 2 months ago (1 children)

*Bernie Sanders is not a democret

[–] mjhelto@lemm.ee 0 points 2 months ago

But he caucuses with the Democrats. He's been a consistent voice of progressive ideas in a party of geriatric complacency. So yeah, in our current political hellscape, he's a Democrat.

[–] Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I am boycotting instead. Also, not American.

[–] sunzu2@thebrainbin.org 1 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Direct action is great but eventually we will need band together to get the thing done

[–] Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 months ago

Well the movement to buy european is growing

[–] Fandangalo@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

I think both parts are right, but maybe more balanced. If millennials could afford to protest AND thought it was effective, they would.

I actually like the “no economic activity” protests, but they are possible for me because of my privilege. Not everyone can just not work or buy things, especially when on paycheck to paycheck.

Money talks right now. It would take collective action and new movement to break folks out of their slowing inertia. They’ve shoved a lot, and like you said, results have been mixed. We got a lot of change, but now the Sisyphean boulder is rolling back down the hill. :/

[–] Tylerdurdon@lemmy.world 0 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I'll get bombed for this but oh well.

Remember this when you see all of those "boomers made this happen by accepting X,Y, & Z."

They all had lives, children, etc, and the policies/administration weren't even 1/10th as stupid and shitty as what we see now.

And no, I'm not a boomer. I just think that argument (which I've seen many times) is ridiculous. We're all trying to do the best we can, just like they did.

load more comments (1 replies)

load more comments