Generation Next & Latinos Agree on War and Immigration

Young Americans between the ages of 18 and 25, Generation Next, are more likely to oppose the Iraq War, believe immigration enriches the country, more accepting of inter-racial dating and generally more positive about the future than any generation.

In other words, the 35MM+ Generation Nexters are quite different than their older siblings in Generation X, people between the ages of 26 and 40, and distinctly different than Americans age 60 and over.

These are the findings in the recently released study How Young People View Their Lives, Futures and Politics: A Portrait of "Generation Next, by The Pew Research Center.

Additionally, Generation Next are also less interested in politics, consummate users of social networking technologies and less beholden to traditional values.

However, on the critical issues of the times--the Iraq War and immigration--Generation Next Americans are more in agreement with Latinos than with nonLatinos. And with both groups just beginning to emerge politically, socially and economically, their impact and influence of on all aspects of American life will become more and more pronounced.

Of course, there is a great deal of overlay among Generation Next and Latinos. Since the average age of Latinos is 25.9 years (2000 U.S. Census), fully half of the U.S. Latino population are Generation Nexters or younger.

The Generation Next, PBS documentary of Judy Woodruff's trip across the United States to gauge the views of 16-25 year olds is to air this month. Check here to find the air dates on your local PBS station.

Photo credit: USAToday