Demographers defined the baby boom as a wave of births that began in 1946, after World War II and peaked in 1957 and continued until 1964 due to postwar prosperity. Most people use “generation” as a term, but demographers refer to it precisely as a “cohort” (a group of people who experience a certain event within a specific time). This reveals that social changes are interconnected with the life of each baby boomer.
There are two groups of baby boomers. Babies born between 1946 and 1955 were called baby boomers. Those who were born between 1956 and 1964 were called late boomers. The last set was born during the first Beatles tour of America and the first firsts were about 18 years old at the time. They are noted for their large populations. They filled high schools, primary schools, high schools, the labor market and universities.
Studies show that the impacts caused by the society where the baby boomers grew up do much to reshape society. They never think like their parents. Because the population of these cohorts is unprecedented during the 20th century, their beliefs and behaviors are predicted to dominate things.
But there’s also a huge discrepancy in terms of economic status between early and late boomers. Compared to the brisk job market and emerging economy underfoot, late boomers need to adjust to economic changes. Due to the rapid growth of the service sectors, jobs for the middle class became less stable, the location of workers changed, and the adjustments of the professional market.
Most view financial security as elusive. They are the people who were born after the civil rights era. Studies conducted even reveal income differences based on ethnicity, race, and place of birth, creating ethnic classes. It was because a third of the population are Hispanic, African American or Asian in addition to black and white Americans. Take, for example, the black boom generation is considered inferior to the white boom generation, even though the generation was rated the best in terms of education.
It is a fact that life was accompanied by postwar transformations changing American society. Ideas about sexuality, gender, and the family were profoundly altered. It has also changed parenthood, redefined old age and retirement, and transformed the workforce. Even in their old age, they have sixteen opportunities to stay involved and active like staying in their workforce to meet the responsibilities of supporting their children.
The changes in society were never brought about solely by the stereotype, but also by conservative types like Seth Grossman. They expressed themselves through street protests while the conservatives use other forms such as flyers, student newspapers and forums. Although their actions did not attract media attention, they achieved their success when they forced a referendum that resulted in the withdrawal of Duke students from the National Student Association.
Conservatives may not be part of the boomers’ projected image, but they became a huge force by quietly pushing their way. They are not even on the front page of the newspapers because they are still attending their class while others were boycotting. However, they have supported conservative politicians such as George Wallace in 1968.
One-third of the early boomer populations served during the Vietnam War. Others made a name for themselves in different fields throughout history. Joyce Johnson was an African-American who fit the stereotype of her activist’s work at her graduate school. When she entered Duke School, she sought advancement not only for herself but for her entire race. She belongs to the African American Society involved in the iconic events on the Duke campus during the 1960s. Grossman and Johnson are baby boomers who made a big difference in their society.
Deep understanding of the baby boomer generation is very important as they move into old age. It should be more about demographic trivia because if population growth continually moves through the system, then economic differences persist as well. Once they do their best to shape society, they provide a significant impact on the lives of many people besides themselves.
