No Grandkids, Just Tweets: How Young People Are Responding To Parental Pressure Online

Parents want grandkids. X users offer reality checks instead.

You don’t want kids??? Why!! Credit: Getty images / skynesher / E+

“I want grandkids.” The best I can do is this article.

There’s a new trend on X, formerly known as Twitter, in which users are responding to their parents’ hypothetical requests for grandchildren. It should come as no surprise that young people of child-rearing age aren’t prioritizing having children. The cost of raising a child has increased significantly in recent years, including housing, education, and healthcare. Overpopulation and the environmental impact of bringing additional people into the world during a climate crisis are turning people who might be able to afford it away from having kids. And many countries are facing political and social unrest, leading many young people to delay or avoid having kids altogether.

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Of course, there are good reasons people aren’t having kids, too. There are changing social norms and societal expectations around marriage and family, and contraception is more accessible.

But the truth is that fewer people are having children. So what are we doing with all of that extra time? What are we telling our parents when they request a new generation? X has the answers.

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Christianna Silva is a Senior Culture Reporter at Mashable. They write about tech and digital culture, with a focus on Facebook and Instagram. Before joining Mashable, they worked as an editor at NPR and MTV News, a reporter at Teen Vogue and VICE News, and as a stablehand at a mini-horse farm. You can follow them on Twitter @christianna_j.

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