Dear World,

We really have heard it all. We’re lazy. We’re smokers, alcoholics, lowlifes. Obsessed with ourselves. We’re inconsiderate, entitled, and spoiled. But let me tell you something. People who call us those things do not see us for all of the things that we do bring to this world. We bring light, we bring ideas, and we bring new inventions - things that will make your lives easier, or even better, even save your lives.

Now, before writing this letter to you, I did some research on some points that older generations disliked about millennials, and here is what I found:

“They don’t know or care about politics.”

I am already confused by this one. In this past 2016 presidential election almost 60% of millennials voted. Although, according to recent polls millennials hate both political parties. So if today’s youth hated both political parties and doesn’t know or care about politics, why would millennials be one of the generations with the highest percentage of people who voted?

“They are lazy.”

I will agree that on the weekends we like to sleep in and we like to hang out with our friends. But, this is after a week of homework, college, work, exams, and twelve-page papers. This is after a week of staying up until 3 am to finish that project, or getting up at 5 am just to run miles upon miles with ROTC. We work just as hard, if not harder than you do. So please stop giving us the “we walked uphill both ways to get to school” crap. On certain college campuses, so do we. So don’t judge us about going out on the weekends, or even staying in on the weekends, as “lazy”. We spend our weeks studying to be nurses, engineers, and business administrators. Just let us have fun on the weekends.

“They are obsessed with technology.”

Since Apple began making phones and smart devices in general, I will agree that our generation has become more interested in technology. But, we are also the generation that is using this technology in healthcare so that you can access your own medical records. We use this technology to create apps that will help you fly airplanes, or apps that help you find family members from hundreds of years ago. We use this technology, not only to chat with friends, but to help turn dreams into a reality. We use our vast amounts of knowledge with technology to even help you when you are struggling. So, in all honesty, why are you mad at us for being good at something that helps you directly, or helps spark ideas that could change the way we live our lives completely in the future?

Now, I don’t mean to be rude to anyone who thinks this way about us. But I do want to help you all understand that we are not who you say we are. You can not group us into a stereotype that includes these types of adjectives. In every generation there are bad seeds, your generation included. But we are not all alcoholic, lazy, unintelligent, self-conceded, and entitled. The majority of our generation is hard-working, motivated, faith driven, and committed to bettering their lives and the lives of others. So, in no shorter terms, please, ever-so-kindly: back off.

Sincerely,

A millennial