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mohandasgandhi:

Afshin Molavi: Future will be shaped by the rise of the angry young man

We are currently living amid the largest cohort of youth in human history. Young populations can be a demographic gift or a demographic bomb. A gift when governments effectively employ them, deriving sustainable productive value from their labour while the young people derive meaningful work experience, raise their incomes, marry, have children, invest, and continue the cycle of life.

The next decade, however, will likely see some demographic bombs blowing up across the world as youth bulges push against weak or underperforming economies and unemployment and underemployment plague societies from Nigeria to Pakistan, from Egypt to large parts of India and sub-Saharan Africa, and in many European countries.

While this environment will inflict damage on men and women alike, the effect on young men will prove to be more destabilising.

The world over the next decade will be defined by the Angry Young Man, born amid this historic baby boom, and now entering the netherworld between youth and adulthood, unable to find a job, angry at his government, hyper-aware of the inequalities around him, frustrated by corruption, and connected to the outside world through social networking sites and satellite television. From Avenue Habib Bourguiba in Tunis to Tahrir Square in Cairo, from Athens and Tehran to Delhi and Karachi, the angry young man, fist pumping the air, has become a feature of our world.

If Mohammad Bouazizi, the Tunisian vegetable vendor who lit himself on fire in protest at his unjust treatment by municipal authorities - setting off the chain of Arab uprisings - represents the hopelessness and frustration felt by many young men across the developing world, the young Egyptians who fought each other to death in a soccer stadium represent the angry young men, frustrated by a world that is seemingly passing them by, lashing out at enemies, real or imagined.

(Read full article)

I think it’s rather unfortunate that these types of articles keep coming out and that the revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa are used to support such an absurd statement. It’s absurd because in the case of the revolutions, in many circumstances, it wasn’t until the women took to the streets that protests became significant because people finally had the courage to go out en masse with the women. The roles that women have played in the revolutions and continue to play are largely ignored, even by the West, which claims moral superiority over the Middle East and its “oppressed women.” The more visible “angry young man” gains all the credit while women are forced into the background as they’ve always been. They, too, have played a significant role in the revolutions we’ve seen all over the world and have been very involved in organizing such. They just don’t make the covers of the magazines or headline news, just as it’s always been for women.

How is it the young angry man who will shape the future when we’re seeing women in most of the seats at universities, even across the Middle East? Women are getting married and starting families later, putting their careers first. They’re learning about their health and taking control of their bodies, allowing for more independence than ever before.

We’ve already seen the young angry man. He’s already taken credit for everything positive throughout history. If anything, we’re entering into the age of the young, independent, and educated woman. This isn’t to cast men aside but let’s be real here.