In the long run,
the facts are on the side of the optimists.
To paraphrase Martin Luther King Jr., the arc of history bends toward progress. But progress doesn't just happen. People work hard to discover ways forward.
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Young Americans suffer more troubled spirits these days than older generations. Gen Z is by far the most pessimistic and unhappy age cohort – a position historically held by adults in their 40s and 50s when responsibilities weigh heaviest. But for what it’s worth, Gen Z is actually doing pretty well financially. (And their biggest concerns are financial.) In fact, so far they are on their way to becoming the richest generation in American history. A new study in the journal Demography has found that Millennials at ages 36 to 40 have 20% higher real median household income than earlier generations at the same age. Gen Z hasn’t reached that age yet, but so far they are showing higher median incomes than Millennial counterparts at parallel ages.
Every generation from the Lost Generation (think Ernest Hemingway and WWI vets) through Gen Z (now mostly in their 20s) has had higher incomes than the one before. The Boomers had the biggest jump, driven largely by the growth of women entering the workforce in large numbers. But every generation has moved solidly up the income ladder, even after accounting for inflation. That progress is one popular definition of the American dream. Whatever its prospects, it hasn’t failed us yet.
Sources: Demography; 2025 World Happiness Report; Gallup
