Why Do Millennials Get So Much Hate, and Are They Really to Blame?

Millennials are the internet’s favorite punching bag

Boomers blame them for killing industries. Gen Z calls them cringe. And somewhere in the middle, we Zillennials are just eating smokie pasua, watching the drama unfold. But if we’re being real, do millennials kind of deserve the slander? Let’s unpack this mess.

1.⁠ ⁠They complain about being broke but won’t stop spending on “vibes”

We get it. Wages haven’t kept up with inflation. The housing market is a scam. Life is expensive. But do millennials really need to be at The Social House every other weekend? Gen Z is out here normalizing living at home to save money while millennials are taking soft life loans just to eat nyama choma at Roadhouse. Pick a struggle.

2.⁠ ⁠Participation trophies weren’t their fault, but they took them personally

Millennials love to remind everyone that they were given participation trophies like it’s some deep trauma. Sir, nobody forced you to accept that plastic award at the school closing day. Meanwhile, Gen Z is busy laughing at their own Ls and moving on. Millennials will write a 3-paragraph LinkedIn post about how missing out on a prefect badge in Class 8 shaped them into the resilient adults they are today.

3.⁠ ⁠The side part vs middle part war exposed their insecurities

Listen, we didn’t start this war. But millennials really saw a TikTok from a 17-year-old saying side parts were ugly and had a full-blown identity crisis. Instead of just rocking their side part and high-waisted jeans in peace, they started giving TED Talks on Facebook about why fashion trends shouldn’t define us. Gen Z was ruthless, but millennials made it way too easy.

4.⁠ ⁠They ruined the internet with their “hustle culture” obsession

Millennials are the reason why every single tweet about resting comes with a lecture about “sleeping being for the weak.” They are the original LinkedIn motivational speakers who turned phrases like “How bad do you want it?” and “The grind never stops” into personality traits. Gen Z saw that mess and said, “Actually, I’ll be soft quitting.” Who’s the real winner here?

5.⁠ ⁠Their humor is too self-deprecating

Millennial humor is like, “Haha, I have no money, but at least I have coffee.” Gen Z humor is a random picture of a matatu conductor standing on the edge of the door with no context. Millennials are still cracking 2012 Jicho Pevu jokes while Gen Z is three meme cycles ahead.

6.⁠ ⁠They call everything “adulting”

Paying rent? Adulting. Taking a mat instead of an Uber? Adulting. Buying Blue Band instead of Nutella because of the economy? Adulting. Millennials turned basic survival skills into an aesthetic, and honestly, it’s exhausting. Imagine Gen Z announcing “I’m adulting” every time they buy a Supreme hoodie.

Are they unfairly hated, or did they bring this on themselves?

Look, millennials walked so Gen Z could run. They survived 1GB Safaricom bundles, Bluetooth music transfers, and waiting for The Beat on NTV just to catch new music. They invented meme culture and carried the internet on their backs for years.

But let’s be honest, they also whine a lot, overuse the word “trauma,” and refuse to let go of their high-waisted jeans. So maybe, just maybe, they deserve a little bit of slander.

What do you think? Are millennials just misunderstood, or is the hate justified? Sound off in the comments.