Millennials these days are constantly being fed the narrative that the state of our nation is getting worse and worse. The media is constantly telling us to be afraid of the latest, most terrifying threat to America. Despite all the sensationalism, there are many things I am concerned about in our country, our state and my personal life. In the spirit of Halloween and all things spooky, I’d like to take some time to briefly discuss a few of them.
First, we have no national plan to combat climate change. All we have are proposals. In June, the Obama administration proposed new rules to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuel power plants. This ambitious plan proposes to cut emissions by 30 percent in the near future. What makes the future of climate policy scary is that the Environmental Protection Agency will set the requirements in June 2015.
If both Houses of Congress are run by Republicans, as many political pundits expect will be the case after the upcoming election, the power of the EPA will be severely diminished. In the state of Florida, the Department of Environmental Protection has lost its teeth. The department worked with polluter companies instead of cracking down on them. Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a measure to buy back environmentally sensitive land through the Florida Forever Program. It is frightening that Scott could get re-elected, and these anti-protection policies might continue for another four years.
Another scary thing to consider is that the total U.S. student loan debt was about $1.2 trillion in May 2013.
This massive amount of debt has combined with a poor job market to swell the millennial unemployment rate to 12.2 percent. As a result, more college graduates are now living at home than ever before. In 2012, 36 percent of millennials — those between the ages of 18 and 31 — lived at home, a significant increase from recent years. Congress and the Florida Legislature have shown no willingness to help curb the cost of higher education by prohibiting predatory lending and halting tuition hikes. Instead, Florida lawmakers have made matters worse by cutting Bright Futures scholarships in half and cutting K-12 education budgets. In 29 states, you can be fired for being gay or lesbian. In 34 states, you can be fired for being transgender. In these states, including Florida, there are no laws explicitly prohibiting employment discrimination for LGBT individuals.
White Americans are using illegal drugs at a rate five times higher than minority groups, yet black Americans are sent to jail at 10 times the rate of whites. Furthermore, divisions within the black community harm the prospects for racial unity and reconciliation.
With the issues of climate change, divestment in education, discrimination in the workplace and more, there is indeed a lot to be afraid of. These issues directly affect my life and the lives of millions of Americans. I, like many other college students, have very little idea of what I want to do with my future. For many other people, this indecision can contribute to depression and anxiety, which in turn, diminishes their ability to function and excel. Fortunately, there are some positives also worth mentioning.
We are no longer in a recession, and our gross domestic product is increasing. Ten million more people have affordable health care because of the Affordable Care Act. The national unemployment rate is down to 5.9 percent, marriage equality is sweeping the nation, and the U.S. is still governed by a twice-elected black president.
The millennial generation is largely apathetic and pessimistic about the future of a country that is perpetually fighting wars, warming the planet, polarizing its people through political parties and borrowing money to help pay the country’s bills. Despite this cynicism, I believe that millennials are smart and capable enough to tackle these problems head on and leave the Earth better than the previous generations have done. Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke the truth: “There is nothing to fear but fear itself.”
Harold Joseph is a UF political science junior. His columns appear on Fridays.
