Opinion | Cringe cures modern tween anguishes

Whip out the One Direction CD and hop in my mom’s car losers, we’re going to Hot Topic.

Everyone had a different style of being cringe in their tween-to-teenage years. Whether it be wearing tattoo chokers, Cookie Monster hats or exclusively rocking Victoria’s Secret Pink yoga pants and perfume, the point is simple: We all had a phase.

However, there exists a daunting difference between the Gen Zers and the post-2000’s babies that we only know as the TikTok generation. It seems that the ever-so-important, humbling and crucial learning stage of being cringe no longer exists. Most noticeably, this behavior subsists in young girls. Teenage girls are putting down the phone case lip gloss in exchange for Dior.