THE CLASH OF GENERATIONS
BALANCING GENERATIONAL CLAIMS
The clash between generations is inherent in character of mankind as seen from the famous saying of George Orwell “Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.” The differences arise due to difference in age, experience, and priorities leading to tension. Every generation has a role to play in deciding the allocation of resources. The resources allocated by old generations for next generation is with an aim to build cohesion. However, the cohesion is at risk because the politics and decision making is in the hands of a few people.
In this essay, we will try to analyze the root causes behind intergenerational tensions, how to build cohesion between generations, how politics can tackle these problems and is democracy the most promising way to create a balance.
Historical perspective
In early times, mankind was divided by races but as the Nations drew their boundaries, formal societies emerged comprising either of a common culture or cosmopolitan in nature. It is at this stage that differences amongst sections of the society emerged and came to be discussed about. As early as on 10 December 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declaring “All human beings are borne free and equal in dignity and rights.” This document was a key in cementing the position of human rights in international law in the aftermath of World War II. It claimed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedom set forth in this declaration without distinction of any kind. Everyone is struggling for better quality of life yet the huge numbers of people across the majority...
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...ocracies mature, the tenure of governments should be reduced to 3 years instead of 5/4 years at present. It will no doubt increase expenditure on elections but will make people aware of their rights and importance of indulgence in political activities. Non government organisations of different strata of society have to pursue their agenda and inculcate the spirit of internal democracy in such small informal set ups. These practices will make the public aware and concerned about politics. Thus, the enlightened citizens will strengthen the democracy and help evolve policies to bridge interests among generations. The medium fertility scenario of UN predicts the world population to be 11.8 billion by 2150 with demographic transition. The sooner the politics and the democratic functioning understood by all, the better it will be for the evolving generations and humanity.
Imminent within modern society is the growth of two antagonistic classes and their struggle, which eventually absorbs all social relations.
221). Conflict theorists focus on the issues that divide the young from the old such as ageism. Society does not embrace the elderly population, which results in a constant battle against stereotypes, ageism and fighting to maintain equal standing in the workplace (Dittman, 2003). In an occupation, elderly workers are seen as washed up and worthless. Competition amongst workers can therefore lead to ageism and the dismissal of the elderly (Carl, 2011, p. 222). Conflict theorists focus on the economical side of aging and therefore focus on profit. In a capitalist society, the elderly are seen as incompetent and less productive; because productivity is tied to profit, these people are consequently removed from their positions. This causes segregation amongst society’s age
Every day, people are denied basic necessary human rights. One well known event that striped millions of these rights was the Holocaust, recounted in Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night. As a result of the atrocities that occur all around the world, organizations have published declarations such as the United Nation’s Declaration of Human Rights. It is vital that the entitlement to all rights and freedoms without distinction of any kind, freedom of thought and religion, and the right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being of themselves be guaranteed to everyone, as these three rights are crucial to the survival of all people and their identity.
“Human rights are not worthy of the name if they do not protect the people we don’t like as those we do”, said Trevor Phillips, a British writer, broadcaster and former politician. Since the day of human civilization and human rights are found. No one can argue against the idea that God created us equal, but this idea have been well understood and known after the appearance of many associations that fight for human rights as The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) that showed up in 1948. Human rights are those rights that every person, without exceptions, is born with. They are the most important human basic needs because no one can live a decent appropriate life without having those rights as a human. In fact, these rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 1948, was the result of the experience of the Second World War. With the end of that war, and the creation of the United Nations, the international community vowed never again to allow atrocities like those of that conflict happen again. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and rel...
Human rights, specially those belonging to the first generation, as they are expressed in "The Universal Declaration of Human Rights" of December, 10th, 1948, are the end product of a long...
Laufer, Robert S., and Vern L. Bengston. "Generations, Aging, and social stratification." Journal of Social Issues 30.3 (2010): 181-205. Web. 16 Feb. 2012.
The generation who are born between the year 1940 and 1960 falls under this generation. This generation was born during a spike in child birth after World War II. The children of this generation had many advantages as they grew up in optimistic and positive times compared to the children of t...
Gesell, I.. (2010). How to Lead When the Generation Gap Becomes Your Everyday Reality. The Journal for Quality and Participation, 32(4), 21-24. Retrieved October 23, 2013 from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1961218601).
On December 10th in 1948, the general assembly adopted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This declaration, although not legally binding, created “a common standard of achievement of all people and all nations…to promote respect for those rights and freedoms” (Goodhart, 379). However, many cultures assert that the human rights policies outlined in the declaration undermine cultural beliefs and practices. This assertion makes the search for universal human rights very difficult to achieve. I would like to focus on articles 3, 14 and 25 to address how these articles could be modified to incorporate cultural differences, without completely undermining the search for human rights practices.
Proponents of human rights argue that the concept’s universality rests in its non-discriminatory character- human rights are meant for every human being- rich and poor, white and black, men and women, young and old, leaders and followers, elites and illiterate, etc- and are all treated equally.
My generation has been handed a lot of issues to hopefully be solved by my generation. The government has a national debt and unsustainable welfare programs. Programs that are well-meaning but cannot be financed by my generation. Changes will have to come through inventive minds of my generation. Also currently there are very few job opportunities for my generation. Many college graduates cannot get jobs. College cost are at an all time high, many of my generation wonder if it is worth the cost or is it even a possibility. The American dream of a college education, a good job, nice home, and car are seeming more and more unattainable to my generation.
The role that globalization plays in spreading and promoting human rights and democracy is a subject that is capable spurring great debate. Human rights are to be seen as the standards that gives any human walking the earth regardless of any differences equal privileges. The United Nations goes a step further and defines human rights as,
While there is no clear definition for ‘human rights’, it is possible to describe them as basic moral and legal rights that all people have, simply in virtue of their humanity. Although human rights are traditionally associated with being civil and political rights, they also include socioeconomic rights. Focusing on a political conception of human rights, it is important to note that not every question of social justice is a human rights issue. Despite UN declarations, many do not consider poverty a violation of human rights. Severe poverty, traditionally defined in terms of low income, concerns insecurity caused by a lack of resources. By the UN dividing its human rights law into two separate treaties, countries are able to endorse civil
Notably, second-generation human rights are derived from positive law and therefore, attempt to address an individual’s right to work, education and access to social programs. Consequently, these kinds of rights are often referred to as red-rights because their implementation is vitally dependent upon institutional support of individual governments (Hiske, 2005). Lastly, third-generation human rights fall under a unique category of rights because unlike first and second-generation rights, they cannot be exercised individually. Instead, third-generation human rights, commonly referred to as green-rights or solidarity rights, must be exerted by a collective of people (UNHCR, 2006). For this reason, the implementation of third-generation human rights has the inadvertent potential of impacting the advancement and procurement of international human