Just finished watching a Tom Brokaw special report on Boomer$ (the dollar sign is intentional) and had to write about it while the images and my thoughts are relatively fresh.The two-hour program debuted last Thursday and had its first repeat showing tonight on CNBC. Additional broadcasts are scheduled March 15, 18 and 21. I stumbled across it purely by chance and found it to be a reasonably good retrospective, though slanted a bit toward the educated, the affluent and the famous. Perspectives from the working class are few and far between, but more on that later...
Brokaw labels those of us born between 1948 and 1964 "history's wealthiest and most influential generation" -- a distinction that arises mostly from the demographic fact that we're the largest generation in world history and the good fortune we had to have parents who were part of what Brokaw calls "The Greatest Generation."
Our parents' generation fought World War II and rode the successes of the G.I. Bill to widespread home ownership, advanced education and upward economic mobility. One could argue whether the Boomers have made good on their oft-stated ambition to change the world for the better or squandered the opportunity. Brokaw, who at age 70 is a bit older than his subjects, believes we are an "unrealized" generation, having fallen short of our own lofty ambitions. I'm inclined to agree.
Even in two hours, trying to review the signature events of a generation leaves you feeling you've barely scratched the surface. How could you not, given such defining events as Woodstock, Vietnam and the Civil Rights Movement, as well as more contemporary concerns over health care and unemployment. Brokaw interviews Tom Hanks, whose movies have generated the highest box office revenues of any actor of all time, and Bill Clinton, the first Boomer elected president. Both are earnest and admirable spokesmen but, IHMO, not nearly as engaging or memorable as Vietnam vet Don Nicholas (pictured above) or Chris and Maxine McNair, the parents of Denise McNair (pictured at right), one of four girls killed in the infamous 1963 church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama.
Yes, Woodstock was the iconic cultural event of our generation. Even today, it retains a mystic appeal, as if all the world's ills could be cured by a few days of music in the midst of mud. I cringe at modern-day Boomers reliving their past at a Woodstock reunion concert. A tie-dyed T-shirt stretched over a beer belly is hardly an ideal fashion statement. (Now that I think about it, maybe it's more of a generational statement -- the fact that so many aging boomers are overweight and in declining health.) Yet there's no denying that music, more than television, has defined our generation.
Undeniably, Vietnam was the war that divided us. I was among the long-haired protesters who found it easy to criticize an unpopular war (55,000 lives lost for what?) but should have shown more respect for the U.S. troops who served and who came home to resentment and animosity. A former Marine, Don Nicholas, recounts his experiences in the final days of the South Vietnamese government and tears up as he explains that love of country is why he's signed up with the Army Reserves, in his mid-50s, and done tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Contrast him with David Harris, the anti-war protester who once was married to the singer Joan Baez and did acouple years in federal prison for resisting the draft. Harris, who became a journalist and author after his release, remains staunchly opposed to America's foreign wars. He says we're making the same mistakes in the Middle East as we did in Vietnam, and who can argue? [Quick aside: I was pleasantly surprised to see Harris at home in his kitchen with his daughter, Sophie, who lives here in Portland and is a family friend.]
Finally, the Birmingham church bombing is presented as the event that awakened white northerners to the virulent racism that cost four little girls their lives and turned the tide in favor of Civil Rights for all Americans. We're treated to familiar black-and-white clips of Kennedy, Johnson and Dr. King but it's the interview with the McNairs that stays with you. Now in their 80s, they exhibit admirable dignity in mourning the loss of Denise, who at 11 was the youngest of the bombing victims, and acknowledging that the deaths of the four girls spurred long overdue legislation.
I meant to be concise, but once again I've rambled. Take it as a sign that the Brokaw program is well worth watching, especially if you're a Boomer and even if you're not.
Photos: CNBC
