I don’t know about you all, but recently a lot of the content popping up on my FYP has felt like feminist doomsday fodder. Particularly, I’ve noticed titles like “Why is Everyone a Trad-Wife All the Sudden?” and “Gen Z are the New Boomers – Let’s Talk About It…” appearing again and again, almost to the point of monotony.
Undeniably, the United States is facing a period of extreme polarization –- politically, socially, and culturally. In this era of conflict, social media has been rightfully utilized by marginalized people across the board to express their anxiety surrounding the uncertainty of their status in society and the precariousness of their rights.
However, when I see these videos on my FYP I can’t stop myself from wondering: is the rise of conservatism in Gen Z women a cause for panic, or are content creators fear-mongering for views?
The Nara Smith Effect
One of the most common talking points creators use is what I call “the Nara Smith effect.” If you don’t know who I’m talking about, Nara Smith is a lifestyle influencer who went viral around late 2023 for being an extremely young, extremely glamorous wife and mother who makes foods from scratch for her family. At first, her content was interpreted as tongue-in-cheek, but as her popularity grew, viewers began to take her and her lifestyle more seriously.
Many creators argue that the popularity of Nara Smith and other “trad-wife” influencers romanticizes the historical subjugation of women. They claim that by posting videos in pretty dresses while cooking and cleaning in their expensive homes provided to them by their husbands, these women are passively discouraging young girls from achieving self-sufficiency and pursuing their ambitions.
Interestingly, this concern is often tied to fashion and make-up trends. For example, many claim that the “Clean Girl” trend (which basically is a minimal but feminine and polished way of presenting oneself) is a sly method of reintroducing purity culture and elements of white supremacy to the mainstream consciousness.
In a YouTube video titled “Gen Z Is Becoming TOO Conservative….and I’m Scared,” creator Toni Bryanne explained: “On the surface, these trends and ideas … might seem like harmless aesthetic nostalgia or personal lifestyle choices, but history has shown us time and time again that culture and aesthetics often pave the way for politics.”
I think that she made a lot of great points in her video, and I encourage all of you to go watch it. However, there is a nuance here that I want to point out.
A Look at the Numbers
According to surveys conducted by Pew Research Center, the overall political trend in individuals aged 18-29 since 2020 has been pretty consistently left-leaning. Only in 2024 did Gen Z shift more to the conservative side, and even then only by 1%.
In 2025, the political distribution of Gen Z was reported as follows: 49% Democratic leaning, 43% Republican leaning, and 9% no lean. This makes Gen Z the most left-leaning generation, followed by Millennials, who lean 49% Democratic versus 45% Republican, with 8% claiming impartiality.
These results weren’t surprising, but they left me with more questions than answers about where the concerns that Gen Z is veering right come from. So, I kept looking, and as it turns out, there is a demographic of Gen Z individuals that have been trending Republican -– men.
In 2025, men aged 18-29 reported to have a Republican lean 52% of the time, versus only 34% Democratic. In contrast, women from the same age group lean 37% to the right and 58% to the left.
So, Why Women?
If men are the ones consistently showing signs of increased conservative values, not women, why is every other video on my FYP criticizing women and feminine-presenting people? Why are we focusing on the impact that traditionally feminine aesthetics can have on our political climate when the true issue lies elsewhere?
I think it’s misogyny.
We all know that modern society, especially in the United States, teaches women to put others down so that it’s impossible for us to solve our actual problems. We’ve seen this time and time again as reflected in trends — think about the infamous “pick-me girl” or the 2020 “VSCO girl” vs “e-girl” fiasco.
These cultural cat fights are not accidents. They are carefully curated and must be treated as such. Think about it this way — why are young women seeing an explosion of “traditional” female influencers, when the statistics prove that young women lean drastically left? Our algorithms are pushing female conservatism to the forefront in a way completely disproportionate to reality and we need to start asking why. I urge you to remind yourself that behind every social media algorithm is a CEO with an agenda, and to ask: “what do these people have to gain by creating a false reality where women are returning to the 1950s?”
While I don’t believe that the rise of conservatism in Gen Z women is really a concern, I can’t in good faith criticize any of the individuals that have been making videos expressing concern. I believe that their intentions are pure and their points are valid –- but they have fallen prey to a propagandized reality meant to pit women against one another and manipulate social trends.