JIGSAW GENS

Generation X — A Legacy of Adaptability & Acceptance

Members of Gen X (“Catalanos” or “Xers”) have mirrored work ethic of older folks while foreshadowing their little sibs’ diversity

The purpose of my “Jigsaw Gens” series has been to bring together a disparate array of lived experiences from across the past century. No matter which generation someone happened to be born into, we can all do a better job of seeking to understand those who are younger or older than us — while simultaneously giving them context for our perspectives.

My first four installments profiled:

Hemingrebels (aka “the Lost Generation”)

GI-Gens (aka “the Greatest Generation”)

Traditionalists (aka “the Silent Generation”)

Baby Boomers (aka “Leapers” or “Generation Jones”)

Next up: Generation X (aka “Xers” or “Catalanos”).

Who They Are

GenXers were born approximately between 1966 to 1977 — give or take a few years on either end. Canadian writer Douglas Coupland is often credited for coining the term “Generation X” after publishing his 1991 alt-fiction novel of the same name. However, as Medium’s Nichola Scurry points out: Coupland was likely influenced by Jane Deverson, Charles Hamblett, and Billy Idol, who had been using the “Gen X” moniker in previous decades.

Other nicknames for GenXers could include: Catalanos, in order to acknowledge the fashion/style and teen angst of GenXers epitomized by Jared Leto’s memorable character of Jordan Catalano on ABC’s My So-Called Life; Latchkeys, since Xers were the first “latchkey kids” expected to look after themselves with two working parents — unlike “latchkeys” from the Hemingrebel and Traditionalist generations, whose latchkey statuses were due to the World Wars; Baby Busters, because their generation came immediately after the Baby Boomers and experienced a noticeable decrease in birth rates; Slackers, seeing how Xers have been characterized as aimless, disengaged, and cynical — specifically in a prominent Time magazine article from July 1990; or Disruptors, in reference to how their generation has produced iconic entrepreneurs who’ve “disrupted” industries and sectors with so many new innovations.

As of the date of this writing (August 2023), there are between 46–65 million GenXers in the United States (depending on where you draw the boundaries of their generation’s birth years).

What They Went Through

First, I invite you to read an extremely candid (and quick-witted!) op-ed piece from this past January, authored by Michelle Teheux:

Two years ago, Medium’s Elwood Watson, Ph.D. penned a piece explaining the cynicism of GenXers. He cites international wars, economic downturns, public health crises, and domestic strife as being staples amidst the childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood of his generation. The result, says Mr. Watson, has been a resilient and adaptable cohort.

Furthermore, in an article from one year earlier entitled “Gen X Will Not Go Quietly,” Amber Fraley talks about how Generation X learned from witnessing the mistakes of their parents and grandparents that divorce is often the most responsible choice between two unsatisfied spouses.

Ms. Fraley credits her generation as being amongst the earliest activists openly supporting the legalization of same-sex marriage. This would explain why GenXers were instrumental in helping the LGBT+ community find increased representation from the media. Cultural androgyny amongst Xers served as a precursor to gender-neutrality, gender-fluidity, and nonbinary identities that would later become embraced by Millennials and Zoomers.

A Medium author known as Bernard speaks to Gen X’s alienation and disaffection by highlighting how Gen Xers have accrued far more financial debt than the Baby Boomers have. Yet, they (with the exception of far-right Xers) overwhelmingly displayed greater responsibility when it came to following pandemic guidelines during COVID-19 than the generations surrounding theirs.

Ms. Scurry, in her previously-mentioned piece, lists environmentalism, birth control, and the AIDS crisis as major social issues on which Xers based their youth activism. This would track with the uptick in support for queer rights ushered in by Generation X. At the same time, she invokes the massive credit card debt incurred by so many GenXers.

Despite these stressors, Ms. Scurry lauds her generation’s contribution to film and television. GenXers popularized TV shows such as Friends, Melrose Place, Seinfeld, and The X-Files — while drawing upon fond memories of John Hughes films from the 1980s. They were the earliest participants in reality TV series (e.g. The Real World, Survivor, Road Rules, or even daytime talk shows, including Ricki Lake, The Jenny Jones Show, and Jerry Springer). And they brought versatile fashion trends to America.

All of this while, as Ms. Scurry quotes a common refrain, enduring their forgotten status as “Jan Brady of the generational wars.”

How They’re Misunderstood

Five months ago, Erik Blair assessed the rise of GenXer musicians. Genres such as hip hop, grunge, alt-, and punk music spoke to his generation’s pushback against neoliberalism, deregulation, crony capitalism, greed, globalization, systemic racism, and privatization.

Alluding to such socioeconomic injustices, Michele James Roberts writes a testimonial to the unrealistic standards imposed upon her generation. She emphasizes it’s unfair to expect GenXers to thrive via “bootstrapping” when they don’t have the same access to pensions or labor unions from which older generations had benefitted.

Xers want to save for retirement and help their own children (and grandchildren) through tough times — just like Great Goldens, Traditionalists, and Boomers did. The mainstream media largely misportrayed (and undermined) Generation X as a bunch of vapid “bubblegum snappers” throughout the 1990s.

They’ve never quite been able to shake that intellectually-dishonest stigma that has been thrust upon them.

Because of their transitional life experiences, GenXers are uniquely positioned to be “ambassadors” between older and younger generations who are at each other’s throats. At the same time, as shown through the arrogance of culture writer Jeff Gordinier in his 2008 book X Saves the World — members of Gen X should strive to have more empathy for the older and younger folks who weren’t born into such a turbulent cerebral and technological shift.

Xers have had a front-row seat to recent periods of economic decline, which has repeated in cycles. Meanwhile, they may have been unconsciously inspired by the pro-immigration and free-spirited ambiance of the Hemingrebels (aka “the Lost Generation”) — their grandparents or great-grandparents.

Why They Matter

On the other end of the bridge, A Grain of Salt | ElbyJames outlines the significant ways in which GenXers differ from Millennials and Zoomers. Whereas the younger generations enjoy streaming platforms, email, and interactive video/phone technologies, Xers didn’t have those conveniences at their disposal. At least not during the majority of their K-12 or college years.

Gen Y, Gen Z, and Gen AA (Alphas) have had a much easier time accessing research tools to enhance their education. With each succeeding decade after Gen X came-of-age, there has been more and more instant gratification in technology.

This author also brings up the dichotomy between “latchkey” experiences of Xer childhoods — contrasted with the overprotective “helicopter parenting” that smothered Millennial and Zoomer kids (“safetyism”).

These traits of innovation and self-sufficiency may explain why America saw a surge in success amongst self-made entrepreneurs, tech giants, and businesspeople. Liberal or conservative, “JonesGen” or “Xennial” — inventors and moguls in and around Generation X have transformed the U.S. business landscape beyond perhaps what any previous generation could have ever conceived.

On that note: We can’t forget the “microgenerations” on the older and younger cusps of the Xer cohort. I’m talking about “Generation Jones” and “Xennials.”

“JonesGens” (born approximately between 1961 to 1965) are the “Generation Jones” microgeneration straddling the grey area between the youngest Baby Boomers and the oldest GenXers. They inherited Boomers’ love of capitalism — while also embracing Xers’ penchant for political activism and incremental appreciation of social diversity.

JonesGens include Americans as well-known as Eddie Murphy, Garth Brooks, Courtney Love, Dan Marino, and Michelle Obama.

The other slice of that sandwich would be the “cuspers” who form the Venn diagram of the youngest GenXers and the oldest Millennials. Also known as “Xennials” (born approximately between 1978 to 1982), they harbor the independence and nostalgia of Gen X while combining it with the fierce individualism and heightened technological prowess of Gen Y.

Xennials (the microgeneration to which I belong) include household names such as Kelly Clarkson, Pete Buttigieg, Jason Momoa, Serena Williams, and Ashton Kutcher.

Some of the most iconic figures of Generation X have been Kurt Cobain, Jennifer Aniston, Will Smith, Rachel Maddow, and Céline Dion.

Beyond these five individuals, a plethora of GenXers have been driving American culture — including its phenomenal entrepreneurs who have done for the business world what Boomers did for politics, what Traditionalists did for music, and what GI-Gens did for acting.

A list of historical figures who’ve been a part of Generation X:

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