The Ways Baby Boomers Helped Shape Modern America

The phrase "OK, Boomer" has become a popular way to dismiss older generations as out of touch. But Baby Boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, played a major role in shaping modern America. From economic expansion to cultural and technological change, their influence can still be seen across nearly every part of daily life. Taking a closer look at their contributions offers a more complete picture of one of the largest and most impactful generations in U.S. history.

The postwar decades were not just a baby boom, but an economic boom as soldiers came home from war to a country full of opportunity. Some of them had accumulated savings during years of deprivation and were ready to build houses and raise families with access to more than they had had growing up.

Growing up in that environment, many of their kids developed a positive attitude toward education and work, and took full advantages of the opportunities available to them. All the while urged on by no-nonsense, hard-working, stoic parents . . . some of whom were literally drill sergeants. The Baby Boomers created and grew numerous Fortune 500 companies. Today their generation accounts for about 2.3 million small businesses employing over 25 million people.

Boomers literally invented the internet and nearly everything we use on it. Silicon Valley and all its innovations was their creation. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and other Boomers brought us user-friendly personal computers and mobile devices that put into every citizen's hands vastly more information and computing power than what originally accomplished the Moon landing. And they're not done yet.

Baby Boomers created a counterculture that resisted the status quo and demanded social change in numerous areas of society. Through protests and social activism and finally by being elected to office themselves, they dismantled much of the structure of systemic discrimination. It was largely due to their efforts that ethnic and religious minorities, women, and LGBTQ+ people are able to receive equal protection and opportunities under the law. One of the ultimate achievements of these efforts was the election of the nation's first African American president, Barack Obama, who himself is a Boomer, born in 1961.

Culturally, Boomers are most often associated with the 1960s counterculture: drugs, sexual promiscuity, and protest music. But in reality their impact has been felt across all musical and artistic genres, from rock & roll to country, R&B, and contemporary Christian music. And a great many of them are still rockin' today. Not to mention that Boomers made the modern film industry what it is. Who could deny the genius of Baby Boomer Steven Spielberg? No one is saying "Ok, Boomer" to him!

This is the generation that supported the Apollo missions that took humanity to the moon, pioneered organ transplants, bio-mechanical prosthetics, cancer treatments, and life-saving vaccines. The result has been greatly improved public health standards and greater life expectancies—which has helped make Boomers one of the longest-lived generations in U.S. history.

An enormous number of Baby Boomers have served in the military and fought in wars in Vietnam and various other Cold War-era conflicts as well as the Gulf War and Afghanistan. And of course they have risen to leadership in every branch of the military and to national leadership as well. Colin Powell, for instance, was widely celebrated by Republicans and Democrats as a professional, non-partisan military leader who helped guide the country through the Persian Gulf Wars.

Baby Boomers are massively to thank for the environmental standards we have today. Landmark policies like the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act have been instrumental in creating a healthier, cleaner environment for all Americans. They have led the way in conservation of endangered species, research into cleaner energy sources, and a vast amount of scientific research that has expanded our knowledge of what is happening to our planet and what to do about it.

We've celebrated in this article some of the contributions of Boomers not to say that they're angels. There are no shortage of problems in the country that can be traced to excesses of this generation of one sort or another. And of course, no group of 70+ million people all think the same and behave the same on every issue. Let's be honest, for every Boomer who is out to save the world there's another who wants to burn it up like a cigarette. That's true of all generations, all human beings. The thing is, we can't dismiss someone because of their age or ideas we don't like as if they're pointless, irrelevant, or have no place in society. Because we might just find out that person, and others like them, are exactly why we have the society we do, anyway.