Gen Z Discovers Political Violence When System Fails
A recent Newsweek article, citing a poll, breathlessly reports Gen Z might justify 'political violence' under certain circumstances. The article, of course, fails to interrogate what 'political violence' looks like when sanctioned by the state (like, say, bombing other countries, funding an illegal occupation, or brutalizing protesters). It also conveniently forgets that many of the 'instances'
Gen Z cited—like self-defense against fascism or resisting government oppression—are precisely what the US was supposedly founded upon. Perhaps Gen Z's 'openness' isn't to random acts of destruction, but to the idea that systems refusing to address climate catastrophe, economic apartheid, or incessant foreign wars might require more than polite emails. When politicians like Rep. Smith take $450K
from AIPAC (OpenSecrets.org, 2023) and then vote for $14B in military aid to Israel (HR 815, 2023) while basic social safety nets crumble, one might wonder if Newsweek's 'alarming' finding is really just common sense.