2019 first saw the widespread use of the phrase “OK Boomer” as a viral copy-and-paste response to a TikTok video in which an unidentified older man states that “Millennials and Generation Z have the Peter Pan syndrome: They don’t ever want to grow up; they think that the utopian ideals that they have in their youth are somehow going to translate into adulthood.”
The movement gained further traction in the following weeks. Internet memes on sites that have largely millennial user bases, such as Reddit and Twitter, began popularizing the phrase as a catch-all reaction to the ostensibly dated values and beliefs of the infamously regarded baby boomer generation.
Baby boomers comprise the demographic born between 1946 and 1964, aptly named for the sudden “boom” of pregnancies that occurred in the wake of World War II. Today, estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau place the current number of baby boomers at around 73 million, or roughly 22% of the country’s total population.
As younger generations have begun grappling for control over social and political institutions in the West, public opinion surrounding the boomer demographic has grown increasingly negative, with critics pointing to the large number of socioeconomic disasters which have occurred under the long-running political tenure of boomers.
Bruce Gibney, author of the controversial “A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Betrayed America,” explained this phenomenon of contempt in a 2017 interview with Vox: “The boomers inherited a rich, dynamic country and have gradually bankrupted it.”
We’re living in what can arguably be called the golden age of viral content creation. As such, and especially when considering the current political climate, the rise of an anti-boomer meme seemed all but inevitable.
In many ways, “OK Boomer” effectively speaks to the frustrations of younger Americans seeking to re-contextualize inter-generational power dynamics. It makes sense, after all; the meme is a format that we can all understand and most can identify with directly.
It’s short. It’s catchy. And, yeah, that’s a problem. As far as jokes go, “OK Boomer” is more than a little stale. As a serious argument, it fares even worse.
The thing is, the saying was never intended to be anything more than a meme. Unfortunately, some seem to have lost touch with the phrase’s satirical roots. In many circles, “OK Boomer” has been restyled as a political buzzword, used to passively dismiss and/or insult the perspectives of anyone outside of an arbitrary age range.
In the context of serious political dialogue, “OK Boomer” represents a damaging logical fallacy. The phrase, often used as a “witty” comeback in response to the notions of an older and typically more conservative opponent, is more of a generalized attack than a meaningful argument. The mechanism here is inherently flawed, and it ultimately voids any opportunity for making a meaningful diplomatic statement.
Repeatedly weaponizing logical fallacies to “win” arguments cripples one’s ability to communicate effectively. “OK Boomer” is the epitome of what it looks like to avoid critical engagement, and therein lies the problem. We can only hope to affect the change we want by confronting the opposition in earnest, and with as few memes as possible.
Grace Pulliam is an 18-year-old creative writing junior from Zachary, Louisiana.