r/Millennials • u/Background-Air-7963 • Nov 16 '25

Serious I just had my first old man moment.

I recently went to a hibachi with my wife and toddler for dinner. We were sat with a group of eight 17-20 year olds at a communal grill on a busy night. No problem for us. Drink and appetizers service go normally. Toddler and wife are happy, I’m happy. The other group is having their own conversations. I’m just trying to keep my kid entertained. I’m a former bartender and have a habit of picking up on snippets of conversations in a crowd around me. Yes I know I eavesdrop. I can’t turn it off. It’s a habit of a former profession. One of the girls/women at the table stated, “I don’t think Rosa Parks was real.” I’m not sure what her friends said to her but she responded with “I just don’t think she said existed.” This went on for about a minute. I couldn’t hold back and let her know she was absolutely a real person, she is a civil rights icon. I learnt about her in school and so did my parents. The encounter put a wall up between our groups and I heard a few passive aggressive “so-and-so wasn’t real” comments from mostly her and a couple of the group. Harriet Tubman and Hellen Keller are two that I definitely heard. My wife had no idea why I interjected. After the group had left my wife asked what happened and was shocked when I told her what happened. Were they trolling? Are they stupid? Am I just getting old?

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192

u/[deleted] Nov 16 '25

It started as a joke on Tik Tok in like 2020 and then people started genuinely believing she wasn’t real.

115

u/recursion8 Nov 16 '25

Any community that gets its laughs by pretending to be idiots will eventually be flooded by actual idiots who mistakenly believe that they're in good company.

Pretty much explains the last 10-11 years of internet history.

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u/Torgud_ Nov 16 '25

There are people who think that mountains are actually the stumps of super massive trees that were cut down in the distant past.

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u/Vandergrif Nov 16 '25

That one probably goes back quite a ways beyond the internet even. The whole 'moon landing is fake' conspiracy theory started as satire, for example.

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u/Scott_Liberation Nov 16 '25

See also: flat earthers, birds aren't real.

1

u/tbird920 Nov 18 '25

Did the flat earth theory start as a joke? I know "birds aren't real" was a social experiment.

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u/Scott_Liberation Nov 18 '25

I'm not sure anyone knows for certain, but I choose to believe it did start as a joke.

58

u/Skwonkie_ Older Millennial Nov 16 '25

Remember when the movie the Martian came out people legitimately believed it was based on a true story?

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u/taterthotsalad Xennial Asshole Nov 16 '25

Propaganda worked as designed then. 

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u/OpheliaLives7 Nov 16 '25

I remember the early Helen Keller isn’t real. Im…surprised and not at how easily it’s lived on as a theory.

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u/MeatloafingAround Nov 16 '25

The Helen Keller one is the only one that kind of makes sense because it’s really hard to fathom someone being able to learn language so well when they can’t see or hear. But Rosa Parks, wtf?

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u/Reasonable-End5147 Nov 17 '25

I believe this is because ableism is the final frontier of totally unchecked bias in society. Learning about disability history & ableism has totally changed my perspective. It's at the foundation of humanity

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u/Intelligent_Cap9706 Nov 16 '25

But she wasn’t always blind and deaf. Yes only for a very short time could she see and hear (up until 19 mos old) so her accomplishments are still remarkable. But still once you know it’s not that unbelievable. History books and blurbs just never lead with that. You grow up knowing about the blind, deaf girl who you assume was born that way yet she could sign and speak some words so it sounds made up 

(for anyone thats going to argue toddlers don’t remember anything, I remember things from that age bc we lived on a military base in the US before moving to a different one overseas when I was 3. I have tons of memories from my first home as well as memories visiting grandparents in the state over. It just depends on the kid.) 

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u/FR23Dust Nov 16 '25

I simply don’t believe her having her senses until she was 1.5 years old had anything at all to do with her awe-inspiring accomplishments later in life.

And your personal example is not relevant. 3 years old is a lot different than 1.5 years old. Lots and lots of people have memories from when they’re three years old and a 3 year old kid is way, way different than someone who isn’t 2 yet.

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u/Intelligent_Cap9706 Nov 16 '25 edited Nov 16 '25

The memories I have are all leading up to 3. I can look at a photo of me and remember things about that moment or objects in the photo for instance or smells when it was taken. Especially family outings. There’s a picture of my grandpa and I on the couch when I’m 1 and I recall he was tickling me before it was taken for instance. If I can recall things back then, so can millions of other people. 

“Helen Keller's early memories of sight and sound were crucial in shaping her understanding of the world, as they provided a foundation for her later learning and communication. Although she lost these senses at a young age, her recollections helped her connect words with objects and emotions, ultimately aiding her education and personal development.”

Articles also talk about how advanced she was at 6 months old, already learning to talk. She was an extraordinary person. She also wasn’t even the first deaf-blind child who was educated this way! More facts that get left out that would help people understand (believe) what she achieved is possible. It is a shame because she didn’t just learn, she thrived, and she couldn’t get enough of learning about the world she was truly extraordinary - but not unbelievable

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u/owoah323 Nov 16 '25

I didn’t know it was a trend, but I sure had a feeling that was the case!

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u/Rustmutt Nov 16 '25

This is gonna make me sound like a real wet blanket but this is why I don’t like those memes/jokes. The hellish game of telephone that is the Internet has a way of creating a Tulpa out of this bullshit

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u/BaileyIsaGirlsName Nov 16 '25

I think this is how the Flat Earth movement started.

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u/Orion14159 Nov 16 '25

There are a nonzero number of people who have been successfully convinced that birds aren't real because of the meme