# Millennial socialism

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Interest in democratic socialism among Americans

**Millennial socialism** is a resurgence of interest in [democratic socialism](/source/Democratic_socialism) and [social democracy](/source/Social_democracy) among Americans and Britons typically defined as being born from 1981 to 1996, generationally known as [millennials](/source/Millennials).

## Background

According to some studies, American [millennials](/source/Millennial) are more supportive of aspects of [socialist](/source/Socialist) politics than prior generations.[1] Some American millennials support policies that would widen [social safety nets](/source/Social_safety_net) and provide relief for [student debt](/source/Student_debt) and [health care](/source/Health_care_in_the_United_States) costs.[2] In some late 2010s polls, young Americans viewed socialism positively and had a less favorable view of [capitalism](/source/Capitalism) than older Americans.[3][4][5] According to a 2021 *[Axios](/source/Axios_(website))* poll, 49% of Americans aged 18 to 34 viewed capitalism positively, compared to 58% in 2019.[6] Capitalism, increasingly dissociated from its connotations of American success during the [Cold War](/source/Cold_War), developed an association with [corporate greed](/source/Corporate_greed), exacerbating [climate change](/source/Climate_change),[2] and [inherited wealth](/source/Inheritance#Inequality).[5] Some commentators and researchers, such as James Pethokoukis of the [American Enterprise Institute](/source/American_Enterprise_Institute) and Emily Ekins of the [Cato Institute](/source/Cato_Institute), have argued that millennial support for socialism can be more accurately described as support for [social democracy](/source/Social_democracy), as opposed to socialism as traditionally conceived (e.g., a [planned economy](/source/Planned_economy)).[7][8][9]

As a generation, American millennials grew up with political discussions about class and [inequality](/source/Economic_inequality), the youngest millennials having been teenagers during the 2011 [Occupy Wall Street](/source/Occupy_Wall_Street) movement.[10] Young Americans generally face worse economic prospects than their forebears, including a higher cost of living,[2] and an increased student debt burden.[10] A 2019 [SuperMoney](/source/SuperMoney) report showed that average millennial income growth is flat after [inflation](/source/Inflation).[2]

## Electoral politics

The American [democratic socialist](/source/Democratic_socialist) politicians [Bernie Sanders](/source/Bernie_Sanders) and [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez](/source/Alexandria_Ocasio-Cortez) have enjoyed support among millennials, with 70% saying they would be supportive of a candidate with a socialist background.[2] A 2019 [YouGov](/source/YouGov) poll showed a majority of millennial respondents as likely to vote for a socialist candidate[2] and millennial voters in the [2020 Democratic presidential primary](/source/2020_Democratic_presidential_primary) preferred the democratic socialist candidate Sanders over [Joe Biden](/source/Joe_Biden) by 20 percentage points. Throughout the late 2010s, millennials revitalized the aging [Democratic Socialists of America](/source/Democratic_Socialists_of_America) from a marginalized advocacy group to 100,000 members nationwide.[10] Sanders and millennial socialists invoke the [Nordic model](/source/Nordic_model) as an alternative, in which taxes on markets and a high personal income tax, including of the middle class, fund the government.[2]

[Jeremy Corbyn](/source/Jeremy_Corbyn) of the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) [Labour Party](/source/Labour_Party_(UK)) had a similarly energizing effect on his country's millennials, though while he tripled the political party's size to become the largest in western Europe, its growth was not driven primarily by young people: the average age remained similar to that before the expansion.[11]

## Analysis

A 2019 [Pew Research](/source/Pew_Research) poll found that millennials were more distrustful of others than prior generations, suggesting that millennial socialist interest in [state intervention](/source/State_intervention) might stem less from belief in human goodness and social trust, and more from a lack of such trust.[1]

Economist [Ed Glaeser](/source/Ed_Glaeser) credits "boomer socialism" for the rise of millennial socialism. Although [baby boomers](/source/Baby_boomers) (born 1946 to 1964) have an unfavorable view of [socialism](/source/Socialism), baby boomers had [social democratic](/source/Social_democracy) programs such as [Social Security](/source/Social_Security_(United_States)), [Medicare](/source/Medicare_(United_States)), and [subsidized mortgages](/source/Home_mortgage_interest_deduction).[2]

## See also

- [Socialism of the 21st century](/source/Socialism_of_the_21st_century)

- [Youth politics](/source/Youth_politics)

- [Youth activism](/source/Youth_activism)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-dystopian_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-dystopian_1-1) Levitz, Eric (August 15, 2019). ["America's Most Socialist Generation Is Also Its Most Misanthropic"](https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/08/polls-millennials-and-gen-zers-are-dystopian-socialists.html). *Intelligencer*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210308234533/https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/08/polls-millennials-and-gen-zers-are-dystopian-socialists.html) from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-Wallace_2-7) Wallace, Danielle (January 30, 2020). ["What is millennial socialism?"](https://www.foxnews.com/us/millenial-socialism-bernie-sanders-ocasio-cortez-aoc). *[Fox News](/source/Fox_News)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200303084053/https://www.foxnews.com/us/millenial-socialism-bernie-sanders-ocasio-cortez-aoc) from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020. Seventy percent of millennials – and 64 percent of Gen Z – answered that they'd be somewhat or extremely likely to vote for a socialist candidate, according to a poll conducted by data and research firm YouGov last September for the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Solis, Marie (May 4, 2020). ["Why Gen Z Is Turning to Socialism"](https://www.vice.com/en/article/gen-z-socialism-ydsa/). *[Vice](/source/Vice_(website))*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210515100737/https://www.vice.com/en/article/g5xz7j/gen-z-socialism-ydsa) from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Salmon, Felix (January 27, 2019). ["More Americans aged between 18 and 24 prefer 'socialism' to 'capitalism'"](https://www.axios.com/socialism-capitalism-poll-generation-z-preference-1ffb8800-0ce5-4368-8a6f-de3b82662347.html). *[Axios](/source/Axios_(website))*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210605202100/https://www.axios.com/socialism-capitalism-poll-generation-z-preference-1ffb8800-0ce5-4368-8a6f-de3b82662347.html) from the original on June 5, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-mahb_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-mahb_5-1) JOseph Blasi, Douglas L Kruse (April 10, 2018). ["Today's youth reject capitalism, but what do they want to replace it?"](https://mahb.stanford.edu/blog/youth-reject-capitalism/).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Salmon, Felix (June 25, 2021). ["America's continued move toward socialism"](https://www.axios.com/americas-continued-move-toward-socialism-84a0dda7-4b8d-483a-8c4e-0c2e562c4e67.html). *Axios*. Retrieved June 28, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Pethokoukis, James (May 20, 2021). ["Some thoughts of Millennials, Socialism and Scandinavia"](https://www.aei.org/economics/some-thoughts-about-millennials-socialism-and-scandinavia/). *American Enterprise Institute*.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Millennials believe in free markets and want a Scandinavian welfare state"](https://promarket.org/2016/03/25/millennials-believe-in-free-markets-and-want-a-scandinavian-welfare-state/). *Promarket*. March 25, 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Ekins, Emily. ["Why so many millennials are socialists"](https://www.cato.org/commentary/why-so-many-millennials-are-socialists).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Beery_10-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Beery_10-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Beery_10-2) Beery, Zoë (November 27, 2020). ["The Rich Kids Who Want to Tear Down Capitalism"](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/27/style/trust-fund-activism-resouce-generation.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210508154926/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/27/style/trust-fund-activism-resouce-generation.html) from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Mead, Julia (January 10, 2017). ["Why Millennials Aren't Afraid of Socialism"](https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/why-millennials-arent-afraid-of-the-s-word/). *[The Nation](/source/The_Nation)*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0027-8378](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0027-8378).

## Further reading

- Burns, Alexander (July 22, 2018). ["There Is a Revolution on the Left. Democrats Are Bracing"](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/21/us/politics/democratic-party-midterms.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0362-4331](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20180730063731/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/21/us/politics/democratic-party-midterms.html) from the original on July 30, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.

- ["Democratic socialism surging in the age of Trump"](https://apnews.com/a1770fd620d94bf58d0ff1035d3e0eea). *[AP News](/source/AP_News)*. July 21, 2018. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20180729213609/https://apnews.com/a1770fd620d94bf58d0ff1035d3e0eea) from the original on July 29, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.

- Isaac, Jeffrey C. (July 30, 2019). ["Millennial Socialism and Its Limits"](https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/millennial-socialism-and-its-limits/). *[Los Angeles Review of Books](/source/Los_Angeles_Review_of_Books)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20201202222228/https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/millennial-socialism-and-its-limits) from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

- Lemon, Jason (June 25, 2021). ["Majority of Gen Z Americans Hold Negative Views of Capitalism: Poll"](https://www.newsweek.com/majority-gen-z-americans-hold-negative-views-capitalism-poll-1604334). *Newsweek*. Retrieved June 27, 2021.

- Jacobson, Gavin (June 5, 2019). ["The rise of millennial socialism"](https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/books/2019/06/aaron-bastani-fully-automated-luxury-communism-bhaskar-sunkara-manifesto-milennial-socialism-review). *The New Statesman*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200113211955/https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/books/2019/06/aaron-bastani-fully-automated-luxury-communism-bhaskar-sunkara-manifesto-milennial-socialism-review) from the original on January 13, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

- McGreal, Chris (September 2, 2017). ["'The S-word': how young Americans fell in love with socialism"](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/02/socialism-young-americans-bernie-sanders). *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210506070625/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/02/socialism-young-americans-bernie-sanders) from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

- Niemietz, Kristian (October 2019). "Millennial Socialism: Same old, same old". *Economic Affairs*. **39** (3): 424–432. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1111/ecaf.12368](https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fecaf.12368). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0265-0665](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0265-0665). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [211669858](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:211669858).

- ["Out of left field: Millennial socialists want to shake up the economy and save the climate"](https://www.economist.com/briefing/2019/02/14/millennial-socialists-want-to-shake-up-the-economy-and-save-the-climate). *[The Economist](/source/The_Economist)*. February 14, 2019. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0013-0613](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0013-0613). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200405165115/https://www.economist.com/briefing/2019/02/14/millennial-socialists-want-to-shake-up-the-economy-and-save-the-climate) from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

- ["The fire next time: What would millennial socialists do with power?"](https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2019/11/28/what-would-millennial-socialists-do-with-power). *[The Economist](/source/The_Economist)*. November 28, 2019. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0013-0613](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0013-0613). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200405165306/https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2019/11/28/what-would-millennial-socialists-do-with-power) from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

- ["The resurgent left: Millennial socialism"](https://www.economist.com/leaders/2019/02/14/millennial-socialism). *[The Economist](/source/The_Economist)*. February 19, 2019. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0013-0613](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0013-0613). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200405165025/https://www.economist.com/leaders/2019/02/14/millennial-socialism) from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

- Vallespín, Fernando (March 10, 2019). ["Análisis – Socialismo milenial en EE UU"](https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/03/07/ideas/1551972909_806992.html). *El País* (in Spanish). Madrid. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1134-6582](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1134-6582). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200608231636/https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/03/07/ideas/1551972909_806992.html) from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.

- Zuylen-Wood, Simon van (March 3, 2019). ["When Did Everyone Become a Socialist?"](https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/03/socialism-and-young-socialists.html). *Intelligencer*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210516070653/https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/03/socialism-and-young-socialists.html) from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.

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