America and capitalism are so closely intertwined in the popular mind that the two are basically synonymous. McDonald’s and Walmart are national symbols just as much as the Statue of Liberty and Mt. Rushmore.
For many people, socialism has long been viewed not merely as a flawed economic system, but a downright anti-American one. Anti-socialist animus is so extreme among certain segments of the country that Obamacare, something that couldn’t possibly be construed as socialist, was opposed as if it represented a total affront to American values .
And given America’s longstanding resistance to all things socialist, it may come as a surprise to many that a majority of millennials now outright reject capitalism.
This newfound hostility to capitalism among America’s youth is already making apparent changes to the political landscape. Socialist organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America have seen astronomical increases in their memberships since the rise of Donald Trump. The Bernie Sanders phenomenon is so well known that it hardly seems necessary to go into detail about its significance here.
There certainly are many reasons to oppose the modern U.S. capitalist system. Gone are the days of ’50’s America, where a single income job that didn’t require a college degree was able to provide a comfortable suburban lifestyle. Today’s millennials genuinely fear that retirement will never be a possibility to them. Millennials are significantly poorer than the Baby Boomers were at the same age despite more education, and will likely to be forced to retire (if they’re able to retire at all) at a much later age than their grandparents.
The notion of saving up wealth and investing in a 401K is an unattainable dream for the many millennials who are crushed by enormous student loan debts that serve as a financial albatross around their neck. They're burdened by the fact that healthcare in America remains absurdly expensive relative to other Western countries. Concerns about massive wealth inequality are so commonplace as to basically be a cliché. As automation and outsourcing continues to chip away at low-skilled work, economic anxieties abound.
The capitalist system has seemingly failed to work for millennials, and we are now in a perverse situation where younger generations are poorer than the preceding generation, a complete inverse of progress.
For my part, I personally believe that as a whole capitalism is a good, albeit flawed, system. I additionally believe that the flaws of capitalism have been overstated by young socialists, and that the solution lies in repairing capitalism rather than replacing it with the even more flawed system of socialism.
However, I’m pretty pessimistic about the future of capitalism in the U.S. The myths needed to sustain it, like how if you work hard you’ll be able to enjoy a comfortable lifestyle, are crumbling. Who, under the age of 40, seriously believes in trickle-down economics or "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps?"
I predict that we will continue to see previously taboo and fringe ideas like universal healthcare and free college become completely mainstream positions. Such modest proposals aren’t really socialism in the classical sense, but as the American Dream continues to die and as young people continue to lose faith in capitalism, the Overton window may eventually shift so far left as to make legitimate socialism a viable mainstream position.
I think it’s undeniable that U.S. capitalism is broken and that major changes are needed to keep the system afloat. Reagan-style laissez-faire, where government is viewed as a parasite and where the market is treated as supremely good, is no longer tenable. As millennials continue to struggle and become disillusioned, deep reforms will need to be made or else the widespread demand for full socialism might become a reality.