Generation X

Generation X in South Africa refers to those born between 1965 and 1980 who came of age during the final years of apartheid and the transition to democracy in the 1990s. Often seen as independent and skeptical, this generation witnessed massive political and social change, shaping a pragmatic, resilient, and sometimes rebellious outlook on authority and institutions.

By the time Gen X reached adulthood in the 1990s, the country was reinventing itself under leaders like Nelson Mandela and later Thabo Mbeki. This period created both optimism and uncertainty.

South African Gen X identity was shaped by:

The political transition from apartheid to democracy
Exposure to censorship followed by sudden media freedom
Economic instability during the transition years
The early impact of globalisation and international culture
The rise of alternative and protest music, both local and global

Unlike the purely “slacker” stereotype sometimes seen in American media, South African Gen X was often more politically aware and socially alert. Many were skeptical of authority — but for deeply lived reasons. They had seen systems fail, transform, and rebrand.

Their independence wasn’t just cultural rebellion.

It was survival.

Bits & Pieces: Slippers, Generations, and the Puzzle of Progress

Life in Fragments

Sometimes life feels like it comes in bits and pieces.

This blog is a bit like that too. Fragmented thoughts. Observations. Questions without immediate answers. But perhaps that’s how understanding begins — not with certainty, but with curiosity.

In the end, it was never really about the slippers.

It was about perspective.

Every generation rearranges the pieces of culture differently. The real maturity test is not whether we approve of the change — but whether we are willing to understand it. Because when we stop trying to understand, we don’t protect values… we protect ego.

And a true maverick knows the difference.

A Coffee, A Courtroom, and a Cultural Moment

Let me take you back to 2018.

I was sipping a caffe latte at Mug & Bean behind the Pretoria High Court. If you know the area, you’ll understand — it has a different energy from the rest of the city centre. There’s a quiet intensity. Sharp suits. Confident strides. Conversations that sound expensive.

And that’s when I noticed her.

A young woman — likely a millennial — walked in. She wasn’t loud. She wasn’t disruptive.

But something caught my attention immediately.

Her shoes.

Or rather… what looked like bedroom slippers.

When Shoes Meant Something

Now as a proud Gen X-er, I’m still trying to decode the younger generations. They move differently. Think differently. Challenge differently. And sometimes, I wonder if we’re even speaking the same cultural language.

But shoes? Shoes were never casual in my upbringing.

My father’s generation taught me that shoes mattered. In business, they could make or break a deal. Shoes had purpose. Runners wore running shoes. Construction workers wore boots. Soldiers wore combat boots. Businessmen and lawyers wore polished leather shoes — especially anywhere near a High Court.

Shoes signaled respect. Preparation. Intent.

And yet here she was — in what looked like slippers — in one of the most formal precincts in the capital city.

It didn’t compute.

Not Rebellion — But Fashion

But as I looked around, I noticed something interesting.

She wasn’t alone.

It wasn’t rebellion.

It was fashion.

And that’s when the bigger question began forming in my mind:

What happens in the transition between generations that creates such dramatic shifts in culture?

Every Generation Thinks It’s Right

Gen X thought we were radical. Baggy jeans. Punk rock. We were determined to burst our parents’ eardrums. But weren’t our parents the ones who introduced the mini skirt and the bikini? And I’m certain their parents thought the same about them.

Every generation believes it has improved society.

And every generation fears society is deteriorating.

So what is it really?

Is wearing slippers in a formal setting a sign that standards are collapsing?

Or is it a sign that confidence has shifted from external appearance to internal identity?

Is This About Shoes — or Authority?

Perhaps the real shift isn’t about shoes at all.

Perhaps it’s about authority.

Previous generations respected systems, structures, and symbols. The younger generation often questions them. Where we saw institutions as untouchable, they see them as adaptable.

Where we saw formality as respect, they may see authenticity as strength.

And maybe that’s the piece we’re missing.

Reconstruction, Not Ruin

Culture evolves. Symbols change. But the deeper human needs remain the same: dignity, belonging, expression, meaning.

Slippers in a courtroom district may feel like cultural fragmentation — bits and pieces of what once felt coherent.

But maybe it’s not brokenness.

Maybe it’s reconstruction.

Every generation rearranges the pieces differently.

The danger is not in cultural change.

The danger is in refusing to understand it.

Because when we stop trying to understand, we don’t preserve values — we lose connection.

The Better Question

So perhaps the better question isn’t:

“Are we heading in the wrong direction?”

But rather:

“What value is this generation protecting that we might be overlooking?”

Maybe it’s comfort.
Maybe it’s authenticity.
Maybe it’s freedom from performance.
Or maybe it’s simply fashion.

Either way, the world will keep shifting. The pieces will keep moving.

And our task — as mavericks — is not to complain about the puzzle.

It’s to study it.
To listen.
To adapt without losing our core.

Because true maturity is knowing which pieces must remain — and which ones were never essential to begin with.

Shalom!

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Bits & Pieces: Making Sense of Generational Culture Shifts