Wait…What????

 

Did anyone see the news bite on Facebook that said, “Giving the thumbs up emoji is considered passive-aggressive by a Gen Zer.” Gen Z is the newest generation, born between 1997 and 2012. They are currently between 9 and 24 years old (nearly 68 million in the U.S.).

Let this be known, this “Baby Boomer” is not being passive aggressive when she sends a thumbs up emoji. In fact, she is acknowledging a text to let you know she got it, or the plan sounds great, or she agrees.

I decided to look into this a little more and found that the “innocent” emojis we have come to use in our texting or on other social media platforms, have hidden meanings to various “generation groups.” It seems that these “secret meanings” have caused confusion between generations and as a result, ruffled feathers.

Come on…these are cartoons people. Don’t we have more important things to worry about???

Maybe when TikTok replaced the laughing emoji with a chair, for no reason, it went viral, just a joke, it all changed. A chair suddenly too the place of a laughter emoji. What the what???

It seems that using the thumbs up emoji causes miscommunication between generations…especially in the workplace. Come on people, for real???

Young people between the ages of 16-29 consider people “old” if you use thumbs up, red heart, OK hand, and a checkmark. Again, is this ridiculous or is it just me?  

While some emojis can be looked at as passive-aggressive, others have developed sexual innuendos. The eggplant, peach, water droplets and devil smiling face all have sexual connotations and shouldn’t be used out of context. Who knew? I only knew about an upside-down pineapple in the grocery cart as a signal of being open to swinging?

Good news…using the blowing kiss, the blushing smiley and the heart eyed emoji can make you more likable. Now we’re talking!  But Heaven forbid you use emojis instead of words. Major faux pas!

Okay, so now you know! Fun facts about emojis. Here is what I want to say. We are people, of all ages. We don’t need labels, unless you are part of the Greatest Generation, which most of us cannot be.

Generations have their good and bad…it used to be that crazy music or those peasant dresses or mini-skirts. Food options were different, cars were different, phones were different and Lord knows, there was no internet. But we’re all still people.

I don’t mind labels being used unless it’s derogatory. For example, my daughter is considered a Millennial. That being said, she is smart, she’s a good Mom, she is vocal about her passions, and she is not spoiled (well, maybe she was a little!) or selfish. Sure, there are Millennials who do fall into this category, but there are Boomers who could be described the same way.

I’d like to propose that everyone I know from my grandson in Pittsburgh to my elderly parents be declared Generation Kind. We don’t read anything sexual or passive aggressive into a smiley face or a thumbs up. Who’s in?? Just send me a thumbs up!