My generation is having fewer babies, according to new CDC data. And it’s not just my generation—according to Axios (https://www.axios.com/2024/04/25/us-births-drop-2023) , every race and every class in America is having fewer babies. In real numbers, nearly 3.6 million babies were born in the U.S. last year, down 2 percent from 2022, when there was a mini baby boom, likely due to COVID-19 and perhaps the spread of remote working (https://www.axios.com/2022/10/19/remote-work-baby-boom-america) .
"It's the first recession where we actually see birth rates go up (https://www.axios.com/2022/10/19/remote-work-baby-boom-america) ," said Hannes Schwandt (https://hschwandt.com/?) , a professor at Northwestern University, who co-authored the paper with Martha Bailey of UCLA and Janet Currie of Princeton.
Things get grimmer from there. The fertility rate in America was 1.62 per woman in 2023, well below the "replacement rate" of 2.1 that would allow a generation to completely replace itself.
Why? Some point to inflation: the cost of food, retirement, cars, or buying a home seems impossible at times. As I recently heard a twenty-something say: "Babies? I can barely afford to feed myself."
It's understandable but not without consequences.
We’re already seeing worker shortages, and most project things will get tougher over the next few decades.
Our neighborhoods are less vibrant—I see fewer kids outside playing, on bikes, with basketballs, or even trick-or-treating.
And selfishly, and maybe most importantly, our society depends on the young to support the old financially through Social Security and physically. Without both, our nation will resemble Japan.
Together, whether by accident or design (https://www.axios.com/2023/10/04/birth-rate-fertility-rate-decline-data-statistics-graph-2022) , we’re making a collective decision that will affect this country for decades to come.
Let me know what you think in the comments at jamesbrowntv.substack.com.
Email: ja..
