Last Updated on January 26, 2021 by Kristen
Photo by Quinn Dombrowski
Vice President Kamala Harris was born in late 1964, the same year as Generation X icons Eddie Vedder, Courtney Love, Chris Cornell, Eazy-E, Sandra Bullock, Lenny Kravitz, and Keanu Reeves.
I could rest my case there but I’ll add a few more pieces of evidence, including her hairstyle and the look on her face in the photograph below.
Photo via Kamala Harris via The Washington Post
Popped collar? Check. Annoyed expression at being asked to pose for a photo? Check. General aura of anger mixed with malaise? Check. Commitment to wearing Chuck Taylors? Check
Sorry, Boomers. She may have been born on the cusp between generations, but this woman is deeply Gen X.
Mean Magazine has an undeniably cool vibe; congrats. But are you open enough to allow your readers to see an alternative take on Kamala’s generational identity?
The debate about this has been waged between advocates of three generations: Boomers, Xers, and Generation Jones (born 1954-1965, between Boom & X). But within academic circles, among actual generational scholars, there is more or less a concensus that GenJones exists, and that someone like Kamala, born in 1964, is a Joneser. While the term isn’t as widely known yet to the general public, many Fortune 500 Corporations, top political campaigns, etc. carefully study Generation Jones data in developing their messaging, strategies, etc. And many mainstream credible media outlets (New York Times, CNN, Newsweek, CBS, etc.) regularly include GenJones now.
A bunch of people have written about Kamala’s identity as part of Generation Jones; here are a couple:
Here’s a recent article by famous British writer Bonnie Greer arguing that Kamala is “pure Gen Jones”:
https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news/bonnie-greer-kamala-harris-is-pure-generation-jones-3845142
This piece ran originally in Politico titled “How Generation Jones Shaped Kamala Harris”:
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/10/07/kamala-harris-generation-veep-debate-426994
And here’s a recent nationwide poll of 1200 people born in 1964: respondents overwhelmingly self-identified as GenJonesers: https://www.prweb.com/releases/new_generations_institute_poll_resolves_controversy_over_kamalas_generation/prweb17670108.htm
Thanks for this, I’m digging in!