Summary

The article reflects on the current societal shifts, comparing the activism and artistic expression of today's "Woke Generation" to the "Lost Generation" of the 1920s, emphasizing that there will be no return to the old ways of America.

Abstract

The author, immersed in researching Kay Boyle and the Lost Generation for a novel, feels a disconnect between the historical era they've been studying and the contemporary world. The streets of 2020, though largely engaged with virtually due to the pandemic, are alive with activism and artistic endeavors that mirror the transformative movements of the past. Young artists are visually documenting the quest for justice and change, much like their counterparts did after World War I and the Spanish Flu. The article posits that the current generation, having witnessed significant trauma and injustice, is creating a new narrative for America—one that rejects the notion of returning to a romanticized past that never truly existed and instead demands a more equitable and just society.

Opinions

The author believes that the slogans "Make America Great Again" and Warren G. Harding's "back to normalcy" are empty promises that do not resonate with the current generation's quest for progress.
There is a strong sentiment that the Woke Generation is aware that the idealized past America is not something to return to, as it was marred by hatred, discrimination, disparity, and violence.
The article suggests that the protests and artistic expressions are a response to systemic issues in policing, healthcare, and political leadership that have been highlighted by recent events, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd.
The author sees a parallel between the Lost Generation's response to the horrors of World War I and the Spanish Flu, and today's youth responding to their own traumas with beauty and a message of hope and change.
The author is optimistic about the future, believing that the current upheaval and rejection of old norms will lead to significant societal transformation driven by the Woke Generation's insistence on not returning to previous ways of life.

I’m Living in a Time Warp

The Woke Generation isn’t going to return to America’s old ways

I sometimes feel I’m living in a time warp.

For the past two years I’ve been writing, editing, and seeking representation for a novel about Kay Boyle’s early years as an ex-pat writer in France. To catch everyone up, Kay was one of the celebrated geniuses of the now near-mythical “Lost Generation.”

I’ve been steeped in historical texts, biographies and early 20th Century literature. So it’s a bit of shock to step into the streets of 2020. Step into the streets virtually, that is. Chancing exposure to the deadly virus permeating our population is still too risky for my generation.

And here’s the surprise: Those streets are being transformed. Activists and children and families, people of every age, ethnicity, gender and background are marching for justice. Artists in Oakland and San Francisco, Providence, the Twin Cities, Atlanta, New York and around the country — are painting vibrant murals on the walls of unsightly boarded-up buildings. Murals that tell the story of repression and, more importantly, hope.

In the midst of a deadly, all-pervasive viral pandemic, in the aftermath of protests across America, artists — most of them young — are showing us their truth — and ours.

“Artists have always kind of been the voice of the revolution,” muralist Aamber Newsome told NBC Bay Area. “Just kind of put a visual to it.

Here’s the comparison I see to the Lost Generation of the 1920s.

The writers who converged on Paris in the years following the Great War were in many aspects, shell shocked. The war had left millions dead. In its wake, the so-called “Spanish Flu” reached its second surge, itself killing millions.

The platitudes of then-President Warren G. Harding’s “back to normalcy” policy, so reminiscent of the current “Make America Great Again,” left the generation that came to adulthood in the early 1920s cold.

Both phrases are empty promises.

Nothing has done more to rip the covers off the pretense of the “Make America Great Again” sloganeering than the hundreds of thousands of protesters filling our streets and screens. They demand a new America, not one based on hatred, discrimination, disparity and violence. We’ve moved way past normal. Today’s Woke Generation knows that “again” refers to a time that never was.

Today’s youth have endured their own traumas. Upwards of 110,000 people are dead from this century’s pandemic. In just the past weeks, they witnessed the killing of Ahmaud Arbery by white vigilantes in Georgia and Breonna Taylor by police in her home. When police murdered George Floyd on a street in Minneapolis, it was one too many.

A tidal wave of anger and outrage flooded America’s streets. Hundreds of thousands of Americans demand change in a system of policing that’s unfair and unjust, in a health care system that’s left the neediest behind, in an administration that foments hate and turns a blind eye to pain and suffering.

As we join in protest, young artists and writers are giving voice and the visuals to amplify the message.

Just as no one expected works of such depth and beauty and emotional intensity to arise from the horrors of World War I and the ensuing global pandemic, no one predicted the beauty — with a message — now gracing our streets.

We don’t yet know what will come out of our own time of upheaval and rejection of the old norms. But out of the rage and disillusionment, we are witness to the rise of a new, Woke Generation — and they insist we will not return to old ways of doing things.