Mom defends viral rant on millennial, Gen Z kids: Must be their ‘advocate’
Alabama mother Jessica McCabe explains her frustration with the economic and social reality for her millennial and Gen Z children, defending her viral TikTok rant.
An Alabama mother of two adult children went viral after sharing her frustrations with the financial realities that face her millennial and Gen Z children.
Jessica McCabe joined "Fox & Friends" on Tuesday to defend her concerns after receiving backlash from some online.
"It's not 1988 anymore," she said. "We have to, as parents, realize that the economy has changed. I understand inflation, prices always go up. But I think that lately the wages are not keeping up with how big the inflation has gotten. And we have to listen to our children."
McCabe posted a video on her TikTok that has received more than 11 million views and counting.
"I am so tired of feeling helpless as a parent," she said in the video. "Yes, my kids are grown adults. My oldest is 28. My youngest is 25. And I thought by teaching them what I learned, which is, you work hard, you get a good job, you're going to get the things in life that you need. Alright, worked for me. Why wouldn't it work for them? Because it doesn't. Because the world has f-----g changed."
President Biden (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
"Yes, I understand. Struggling is a part of life. We all struggled. But there's a difference between struggling and drowning," she added.
McCabe expressed her concern over whether the American Dream is still achievable for younger generations, specifically given the state of the U.S. economy.
"The reason why I made the video is because I was so frustrated. I went out yet again with my son to go trying to find an apartment he can afford," she said.
"Half the places I felt like should have been condemned, that he could afford. And the other half, they're running four times your rent. They want you to show that you can have like four times that. So, it was getting frustrated," she told the "Fox & Friends" co-hosts.
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The Alabama mom pointed to a number of issues that are plaguing the U.S. economy, including rising inflation, wages and even the housing market.
According to the June Consumer Price Index, prices climbed 3% on an annual basis, slightly below the 3.1% increase forecast by Refinitiv economists.
Although inflation has cooled from a peak of 9.1%, it still remains above the Federal Reserve's 2% target rate.
Other parts of the report pointed to a slower retreat for inflation. Core prices, which exclude the more volatile measurements of food and energy, climbed 0.2%, or 4.8% annually. Both of those figures are lower than Refinitiv economists expected. However, core prices remain well above the Fed's target.
Americans continue to have their wallets pinched by inflation's pervasive presence, and the slow growth of wages only further exacerbates the pain.
U.S. wage growth has slowed sharply over the past year and is on pace to return to pre-pandemic levels by early 2024, according to new data from Indeed.
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The wage tracker – based on salaries for job advertisements listed on Indeed – showed that salaries were up 5.3% in May, compared with the same time one year ago. That is a marked drop from January 2022, when wages were up about 9.3%, suggesting that employers are facing less competition for new hires.
Based on the current trajectory, wage growth will likely return to its pre-pandemic range of about 3% to 4% late this year or early 2024.
McCabe highlighted her son, who is struggling to reconcile his pay with the increasing cost of living in the U.S.
"It is frustrating because he went to college, and I understand that most places want experience, you know, even though you have a college degree. So, the first job that he got right out of college was only paying $19 an hour," she said, adding that her son received a raise to $22 an hour.
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Part of McCabe's concern was also how the American Dream is becoming increasingly difficult for younger generations to attain.
According to a recent poll from NORC at the University of Chicago, nearly a quarter of Americans find the American Dream "out of reach," rising from 18% in 2022 to 24%.
"I hear all the other Gen Zs and millennials in my comments, saying that they finally feel seen because I think us, as Gen-X, we forget that it's not the same as it is now for our kids," McCabe said. "And we think what we did is that they should be able to, too."
"We need to be their advocate. I didn't have kids to watch them suffer their entire life."
FOX Business' Megan Henney contributed to this report.
