Almost half of millennials believe the United States should not play an active role in world affairs, according to a recent study from the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
The organization found that while the silent generation — those born between 1928 and 1945 — widely support America’s involvement in global affairs (78 percent), the level of support diminished with each age group. It’s easy to say that millennials are simply resisting the Trump administration’s foreign policy on a partisan basis, but millennials generally had the same sentiment during the Obama administration.
The underlying issue is that many millennials lack a proper understanding of foreign affairs and history. Throughout high school and college, our generation has heard teachers and professors condemn America’s intervention in global political issues, denouncing the War on Terror as a self-serving “war for oil” and criticizing American alliances with undemocratic countries. Moreover, the millennial generation has been told that the U.S. committed egregious sins throughout its history and should not be celebrated.
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At the same time, these educators espouse that America isn’t doing enough to halt human rights violations all over the world. Millennials do not understand the connection between the two principles. This has caused them to embrace a more isolationist view on global politics than their elders, sprinkled with some social justice.
As a result, only 44 percent of millennials believe in the importance of maintaining superior military power and they are less inclined to support the use of force against violent aggressors abroad like the Islamic State. Only a quarter of millennials believe the U.S. needs to be the “dominant world leader,” and only half believe in American exceptionalism.
While these uninformed millennials are not complete isolationists, their libertarian views on foreign affairs blind them from seeing the bigger picture. It’s impossible to look after the best interests of Americans at home without defending and protecting our interests abroad. Both parties understand this to varying degrees, which is probably why such a large percentage of young voters, 54 percent, consider themselves independents.
Fortunately, foreign policy isn’t exactly on top of the minds of millennial voters, or else the country might be in serious trouble. During the 2016 presidential election, one survey showed that employment and wages were the primary concern for millennial voters. With unemployment numbers at record lows and wage growth the highest since the Bush administration, the impact of this trend will likely be minimal at best.
