I taught university students in Texas and Indiana for 39 years with most of them representing Generation X (born 1965-80) and Millennials (born 1981-96). As a retired baby boomer (born 1946-64), I am writing this note to Generation X, Millennials such as my children and their spouses, Generation Z (born 1997-2012), and to all those beyond such as my three-year-old grandchild.
The women and men of the silent generation (born 1928-45) and baby boomers took to the streets and struggled for the right of minorities to vote. Minority women and men finally achieved the right to vote with the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Future generations, such as yourselves, were the beneficiaries of this struggle. Yet, the Supreme Court, with its Republican appointed members, began gutting the Voting Rights Act in 2013 (Shelby Country v. Holder) and in 2023 (Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee). In state after state Republicans are suppressing and restricting the right to vote with the goal of limiting voter turnout among minorities. Examples of voter suppression and restrictions include the closure or reduction of hours of state offices where acceptable voting IDs can be obtained; the closure or relocation of polling stations that served predominantly African-American minority voters, forcing people to travel long distances or to wait in long lines to cast their ballots; the reduction in the number of ballot drop-off points or boxes, especially in areas that serve minority voters; the elimination or reduction of early voting periods; burdensome requirements for obtaining or submitting mail-in and absentee ballots; restrictions or bans on voter registration drives; the elimination of same-day voter registration; the permanent disenfranchisement of convicted felons; large scale purges of voter rolls; and voter caging, a tactic in which a political party, the Republican Party, sends non-forwardable mass mailings to registered voters who are unlikely to support its candidates and then uses any returned mailings as a basis for challenging the voters’ registration or right to vote; and restrictions on college students from voting in the area in which they are attending school. Some require the name on one’s voter ID with the name on the voter registration form to be exactly alike. Hispanics who have multiple names, often four, may have different names on their voter’s registration and their driver’s licenses or other voter IDs. They can be denied the right to vote. Women who get married and change their name on their driver’s license or other form of ID but forget to change the name listed on voter registration can be denied the right to vote. The purpose is very clear. Republicans want to suppress or restrict the right to vote and reduce voter turnout among both minorities and women.
The same Republicans have used lies and conspiracy theories to cast doubt on the election processes. Millions of Americans believe these lies despite the fact that no such evidence exists that the elections of 2018, 2020, and 2022 were somehow illegal or not fair to all. This is a clear attempt to encourage voters to seek non-democratic alternatives such as what one finds in Project 2025, written and supported by Republicans and Donald Trump. The same Republicans and President Trump supported, encouraged, and did nothing to prevent illegal attempts, such as the use of false electors and pressuring local officials not to certify election results, to change the legitimate outcome of the 2020 election. The same Republicans and President Trump supported and encouraged the violent, illegal attempt to prevent the certification of the electoral votes by the Congress and the peaceful transfer of power on January 6, 2021.
Trump and Republicans have used irresponsible and violent rhetoric which has encouraged their followers to harass and threaten public officials such as judges, judiciary officials, jury members, members of Congress, members of the executive branch, poll workers, and their families. The FBI notes that the number of threats of violence has increased exponentially. This has required an increase in the need for security protection for officials who in the past have never needed such protection. It has created a hostile, threatening political environment in this country.
Women from the silent generation and the baby boomers struggled to make their own decisions concerning reproductive healthcare and to be able to determine their own futures. Yet, because of former President Trump and the Republicans, today, depending on the state in which one lives, women, primarily from Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z have been stripped and criminalized of their ability to make their own decisions concerning their reproductive healthcare and future. Doctors are afraid to prescribe certain drugs or even perform basic reproductive procedures in emergency situations for fear of losing their medical licenses or being prosecuted. The Supreme Court refused to hear a case that would protect emergency abortion care. OB-GYNs in these states have expressed fear for their patients and fear of doing what is right for their patients. Maternal death rates are 62 percent higher in states that restrict abortions (Commonwealth Fund and Bloomberg). OB-GYNs are leaving these states in large numbers and fewer medical students are applying to specialize in obstetrics in these states. In a 2023 survey of doctors, 76.4 percent stated they would not apply to work in a state that restricts access to abortion (Bernstein, MD, et al, Journal of Internal Medicine 2023). The right of access to contraception is being threatened. Republicans, such as VP candidate JD Vance, have expressed the desire to track pregnant women across state lines to make sure they do not leave their home state to go to another state to have an abortion. White evangelicals, the major voting bloc behind the Republicans, have prioritized a nationwide ban on a woman’s right to make her own decisions concerning reproductive healthcare. Should the Republicans gain control of the House, Senate, and the Presidency in the next election, this will be applied nationwide. Make no doubt about it. Women of Generation X, Millennials, Generation Z, and beyond will become second class citizens when it comes to healthcare no matter what state you live in, and maternity will be less safe for all women.
I watched the silent generation, such as my mother, and baby boomer women, such as my wife and the women with whom I grew up, fight to break the so-called glass ceilings in the public and private sectors including the ability to work in any field, to have equal pay for equal work, and to have a seat at the decision-making tables in the public and private sectors. Women now outnumber males in the US and vote at higher rates than males. Twelve women, more than any time in history, were elected Governor in our country in 2022. The current Congress is made up of 28 percent women, more than any time in our history. As of 2023, fifteen percent of the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies were women, more than any time in our history. Those of you, including males, from Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z have experienced, understand, and know that better outcomes occur when decisions are made with diversity at the decision-making tables. Republicans in many states, such as my home state of Florida and in Texas, under the guise of “anti-woke” are placing legal pressures on the public and private sectors to end hiring practices that encourage and prioritize the hiring of qualified women into leadership positions. Should the Republicans gain control of the House, Senate, and the Presidency in the next elections they will work to make it more difficult for women to break that glass ceiling and not have a seat at the decision-making table despite their qualifications.
Republicans are restricting and dictating what and how public educators from elementary school through college can teach in terms of the role of race in history, economics, and politics. In Florida, the number of young faculty members and teachers who are applying to teach at universities and public schools is declining because of this oppressive environment and restrictions on free speech. The best faculty and teachers are leaving the state. In addition, the Republicans have taken the lead in banning books with predominantly black and LGBQT authors from public schools and libraries. This environment does not bode well for democracy.
My message to you, the generations that are following the baby boomers, is clear. The 2024 presidential election represents a stark choice between an inclusive or an exclusive America. In your lifetimes our country will become one of the most diverse countries in the world. Millennials and Generation Z already represent the most diverse generations of Americans in history and by 2035-45 minorities will outnumber “whites.” Hopefully, the US will represent a beautiful patch-like quilt with a fully inclusive democratic polity. That possible future depends on this election. It is most important that you vote this fall with full knowledge of the possible outcomes. Elections matter.
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