An ‘OK, Boomer’ Response Draws Some Heat – By John Johnson (Newser) / Nov 9 2019
Boomer radio host Bob Lonsberry likens it to the ‘n-word’
(Newser) – The “OK, Boomer” trend—in which members of Gen Z use the phrase to dismiss old folks as out of touch—has run into controversy in upstate New York, where a conservative radio host apparently found genuine offense in the dig at his generation. “‘Boomer’ is the n-word of ageism,” declared Bob Lonsberry in a since-deleted tweet, reports the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. “Being hip and flip does not make bigotry ok, nor is a derisive epithet acceptable because it is new,” the 60-year-old wrote. Critics, including Dictionary.com, immediately denounced the comparison. “Boomer is an informal noun referring to a person born during a baby boom, especially one born in the US between 1946 and 1965,” explained the dictionary website. “The n-word is one of the most offensive words in the English language.” Related coverage:
- The trend: Need an “OK, Boomer” primer? The New York Times and NBC News recently wrote about the surging popularity of the phrase. Here is how 19-year-old Shannon O’Connor sums it up to the Times: “A lot of them (boomers) don’t believe in climate change or don’t believe people can get jobs with dyed hair, and a lot of them are stubborn in that view,” she says. “Teenagers just respond, ‘OK, Boomer.’ It’s like, we’ll prove you wrong, we’re still going to be successful because the world is changing.”
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