Society, Law & Politics

A fresh take on the 'COVID generation': How the pandemic may have changed young people for the better

Lisa Marshall — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 18:15:32 +0000

A fresh take on the 'COVID generation': How the pandemic may have changed young people for the better Lisa Marshall Tue, 04/21/2026 - 12:15

Lisa Marshall

At the peak of the pandemic in 2021, teenagers from Sackets Harbor, New York, got certified as ambulance drivers and took over running the local emergency medical service when the usual, much older, volunteers had to step away due to COVID-19 concerns.

Eight members, all under age 21, of the Sackets Harbor EMS Crew in December 2021. Many had to leave high school class when a call came in. (Credit: Amy Feiereisel, NCPR)

In Los Angeles, youth with the nonprofit Teen Line fielded texts and calls around-the-clock from peers struggling with mental health issues amid isolating school lockdowns.

Elsewhere, kids as young as 5 years old assembled care packages for community members in need, while teens fired up their schools’ 3D printers to churn out face coverings for essential workers.

“It is true that the pandemic was a very difficult time for many young people. But there is also a quieter, equally important story that needs to be told,” said sociologist Lori Peek, director of the Natural Hazards Center at CU Boulder. “For some young people, it was also an awakening—a realization that they had the capacity to do something in the face of a crisis.”

In a new paper, published in the Journal of Hazard Literacy, Peek and her colleagues tell that story, analyzing more than 115 pandemic-era news articles to offer a fresh take on what some have referred to as the COVID generation.

Having grown up in the shadow of a global pandemic, with increased threats of natural disasters and mass shootings, today’s kids and young adults have often been framed as victims. But through her latest research, Peek—who has spent her career studying how disasters impact children and youth—illustrates the oft-overlooked strengths they bring to bear in times of crisis.

They can relate to young people in ways that adults can’t. They are fluent in digital technologies. And they often have more available energy and free time than busy adults can muster, she said. They’re also, as the paper concludes, more “disaster literate,” meaning they can identify who needs help and come up with creative solutions.

“With the rise in the number of disasters globally, we are growing a more disaster-literate generation,” said Peek. “The question now is, how do we harness what these young people have to offer?”

'Disasters are not equal opportunity events'

"Ring" by 17-year-old Shashank Salgam. "Me and my peers were hit hard by the isolation of quarantine, but we’re rebounding with a resolve to connect beyond boundaries," wrote the young artist in the caption of his painting.

For the study, Peek worked with Zoe Lefkowitz and Melissa Villarreal, both research assistants at the Natural Hazards Center and doctoral candidates in the sociology department, to develop a database of pandemic-related news articles from 2020 to 2023.

Most of the thousands of articles they found focused on kids’ vulnerabilities and what adults were doing to help them. They then conducted a qualitative analysis of 115 stories that included children’s voices, analyzing and coding them.

They found eight distinct ways kids behaved altruistically.

They ranged from making or collecting and distributing supplies, money and food, to creating art and offering emotional support for peers, to participating in vaccine research.

Peek noted that the children featured in the stories tended to, almost instinctively, recognize that some groups—like the elderly, people with disabilities, the unhoused and lower-income families—were hit harder than others.

“Disasters are not equal opportunity events, and kids realize this,” said Peek.

Lefkowitz was particularly moved by the story of 10-year-old Kaylan Park, who stood at a podium before a booing crowd at a school board meeting near Akron, Ohio, to support extending the district’s mask mandate after the omicron variant emerged.

“My teacher tells me when you do something for other people, they can do it back,” Park told the school board that day, wearing a mask reading “masks save lives.” “You’re showing kindness.”

Lefkowitz also pointed to other “micro” acts of altruism. Around the country, children painted rocks with messages like, “The best is yet to come,” and “This will pass,” and placed them along sidewalks around their neighborhood. Another put on a “mini prom” for his babysitter to help her celebrate the milestone she missed during school lockdowns.

COVID-era books written by children

Lasting impacts

Lori Peek works with youth volunteers in the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina.

It’s unclear how these experiences are shaping children’s lives today, but research on adults offers clues.

One study looked at adults who volunteered to help after the 9/11 attacks in New York City. Years later, they reported that the experience had helped them heal from their own trauma and made them feel more connected to their community and empowered to create change.

“I would like to think that these children in our study understand the impact they made and that it changed their opinion of themselves,” said Lefkowitz. “I also hope they will remember the empathy they felt and, as they grow older, that will encourage them to address other inequalities that they see.”

Peek cautioned that she does not intend to "romanticize" the pandemic. It had real, negative impacts on children, their families, their schools and their communities. Oftentimes, kids had to step up because the institutions created by adults failed them.

But, if we overlook their agency, she said, we might undermine an opportunity to build a more resilient generation that is ready for the next disaster. She advises policymakers to create and support youth advisory boards to give young people a voice on pressing community issues and crises.

For parents who may be uncertain how to talk to their children about an ongoing disaster, she offered this advice: Ask them what they would like to do to help.

New research highlights the altruistic acts of youth during the pandemic and suggests that their experiences may have prepared them to respond to future disasters with greater empathy and resilience.

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Teens practice social distancing with masks on during the Covid-19 pandemic. Credit: Adobe Stock Images

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TikTok doesn't change minds—it changes moods

Megan M Rogers — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 16:47:29 +0000

TikTok doesn't change minds—it changes moods Megan M Rogers Fri, 03/27/2026 - 10:47

Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine

New research from CU Boulder political scientist Michelangelo Landgrave finds that watching political influencers on TikTok does not seem to influence young voters on the issues—but does leave them feeling sadder, angrier and more anxious.

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Preparing schools to respond to concerning behavior: Evaluation finds strong gains

Megan M Rogers — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 14:35:32 +0000

Preparing schools to respond to concerning behavior: Evaluation finds strong gains Megan M Rogers Tue, 03/17/2026 - 08:35

A new evaluation—led by CU Boulder's Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence—of Colorado's Threat Assessment and Management Protocol training found significant increases in participants' knowledge, skills and confidence in threat assessment.

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From the soccer field to the streets: How women are leading the resistance in Iran

Lisa Marshall — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 20:33:16 +0000

From the soccer field to the streets: How women are leading the resistance in Iran Lisa Marshall Thu, 03/12/2026 - 14:33

Lisa Marshall

Clad in black head scarves and white uniforms, the Iranian Women’s Soccer team stood in silence on an Australian soccer field earlier this month as the country’s national anthem played without their voices.

Their refusal to sing along was met with harsh criticism back home, where state media labeled them “wartime traitors” and called for “severe” punishment. On Tuesday, the Australian government granted asylum to seven as the remainder returned home.

Their quiet protest marks the latest example of Iranian women—at great personal risk—publicly pushing back against decades of oppression.

Marie Ranjbar

“Iranian women have always been at the forefront of social justice movements and have articulated very clear visions of what they want and need from a future Iranian government,” said Marie Ranjbar, an assistant professor of women and gender studies who studies social justice movements in Iran. “It’s important that we center their voices, especially in this moment.”

In honor of Women’s History Month, CU Boulder Today caught up with Ranjbar, whose father is from Iran, to discuss the history of the women’s resistance movement in Iran, and the ongoing war.

First, how are you and your loved ones doing?

The hardest part is that we can’t reach our families. We had an internet blackout during the 12-day war last June, and another in January during government protests in which upwards of 36,000 Iranians were killed. I was finally able to get a proof-of-life text message from my uncle on Friday. The last communication I received from a good friend in Tehran was Tuesday, where she reported the constant sound of bombings.

How was life different for women after the Islamic Republic took hold in 1979?

There is no comparison between women’s rights pre- and post-revolution, particularly in the area of family law. For instance, child marriage is allowed as early as age 13, the right to divorce is limited, and women have been sidelined in terms of their ability to serve in certain government capacities. I say that while recognizing the incredible gains that Iranian women have made under the Islamic Republic and their efforts to get the state to respond to their demands.

Soccer has long been a focal point of women’s resistance. Why?

Following the 1979 revolution, girls and women were banned from soccer stadiums, although soccer fans disguised themselves as boys to attend soccer matches. In 2019, Sahar Khodayari attempted to watch a soccer match disguised as a man. Facing a prison sentence, she died by suicide through self-immolation outside the courthouse — a heart wrenching moment that highlighted the state’s discriminatory policies restricting girls’ and women’s access to public spaces.

The Hijab, or headscarf, has been central to many protests. Why?

Across pre- and post-revolutionary Iran, women’s bodies have been positioned as visible symbols of what the government wants to project about its society. For instance, in 1936, when Reza Shah sought to position Iran as a modern nation, he issued the Unveiling Act. It banned all Islamic veils in public and, in some cases, women were forced to unveil at bayonet-point. The 1983 Veiling Act mandated compulsory veiling. In both cases, women have been deprived of choice and bodily autonomy.

What is the Women, Life, Freedom movement?

Women, Life, Freedom was sparked in September 2022 by the state sanctioned killing of a young woman, Jina Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police for allegedly wearing her Hijab too loosely. For Iranian girls and women, the idea that a woman could be detained, beaten and die on the basis of what she was wearing was so horrific — it was really a flash point. Some women burned their headscarves publicly, and women and men protested in cities throughout Iran and around the world. It was the first time in modern Iranian history that mass anti-government protests centered first and foremost on women's rights. It was a cultural reckoning. In many places throughout Iran, some women no longer wear hijab.

How is the war impacting people on the ground?

U.S. media has focused primarily on the geopolitical analysis, but what's lost in those narratives are Iranian civilians. They are stuck between a rock and a hard place, dealing with incredible violence from this regime, and U.S. and Israeli airstrikes in very populous civilian areas. There are 16 million people in and around Tehran who are impacted by strikes on oil refineries, with smoke enveloping the area and Iranians warned not to step outside. Yes, we saw senior leaders of the regime assassinated, but we also saw a school with approximately 180 school-aged girls killed.

What is happening to the protesters there?

Human rights activists such as 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi remain imprisoned, alongside tens of thousands of Iranians who were arbitrarily detained during the January 2026 crackdown. Within prisons, authorities may escalate mistreatment or carry out executions without due process. Simultaneously, the U.S. and Israel are striking detention centers, with limited information about whether political prisoners are safe or have been injured or killed. In effect, human rights activists are being targeted in the name of protecting human rights.

Could this military action advance the cause of women and girls in Iran?

I am very skeptical. Look at the case of Afghanistan, where I worked between 2005 and 2010: We went to war because of 911, but it was also framed through this idea of securing human rights for Afghan women. Twenty years and $2 trillion later, we handed the country back to the Taliban, and this iteration of the Taliban is arguably much worse than the one of the late 90s.

If war is not the answer, what is?

That’s a really complicated question. But I think the focus should continue to be on what the majority of Iranians are expressing that they need and want from a new government— a future Iran that is free, democratic and respects bodily autonomy and human rights.

CU Boulder Today regularly publishes Q&As on news topics through the lens of scholarly expertise and research/creative work. The responses here reflect the knowledge and interpretations of the expert and should not be considered the university position on the issue. All publication content is subject to edits for clarity, brevity and university style guidelines.

In honor of Women's History Month, Marie Ranjbar, professor of women and gender studies, discusses the long history of feminist activism in Iran and how the ongoing war is impacting people on the ground.

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Protesters in the Women, Life, Freedom movement march in Parliament Square in London in October, 2022 to decry the death of Mahsa Amini. Credit: Wikapedia Commons

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Protesters march in Parliament Square in London in October, 2022 to decry the death of Jina Mahsa Amini at the hands of the morality policy in Iran. The protest movement came to be known as Women, Life, Freedom. Credit: Wikamedia Commons

CUriosity: Why is K-pop so popular in the United States?

Yvaine Ye — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 19:21:39 +0000

CUriosity: Why is K-pop so popular in the United States? Yvaine Ye Tue, 03/10/2026 - 13:21

Yvaine Ye

In CUriosity, experts across the CU Boulder campus answer questions about humans, our planet and the universe beyond.

Stephanie Choi, assistant professor of ethnomusicology at CU Boulder and a K-pop fan, talks about why this music genre has gained widespread popularity beyond South Korea.

Editor's note: “Golden” from "KPop Demon Hunters" has become the first K-pop song to win the Oscar for Best Original Song at the 2026 Academy Awards.

Girl group Huntr/x in Kpop Demon Hunters. (Credit: Netflix)

Since last summer, few songs have been as inescapable as “Golden.”

In the Netflix blockbuster film “KPop Demon Hunters,” animated girls in stylish outfits, who slay monsters, belt out the anthem, “We’re goin’ up, up, up, it’s our moment / You know together we’re glowing,” a chorus that countless American children (and plenty of adults) can now sing on cue.

South Korean popular music, or K-pop, is having a moment in the United States, and 2026 could be its biggest year yet.

“Golden” recently became the first K-pop song to win a Grammy Award. It is also nominated for Best Original Song at the upcoming Academy Awards on March 15. Two of the genre’s biggest acts, BLACKPINK and BTS, are releasing new albums this year, while groups I-DLE and Twice are touring across North America.

Stephaine Choi saw the K-pop wave coming for years. An assistant professor in the College of Music who studies K-pop’s global influence, Choi is also a fan of the genre.

On top of a pastel-pink cabinet in Choi’s office sits a small shrine to her fandom: photos of EXO, a South Korean boy band she has followed for more than a decade, stuffed animals representing members of SHINee, another favorite, and souvenirs from K-pop concerts she’s been to.

Her most prized piece is a lipstick shaped like SHINee’s lightstick, an aqua-colored glow stick that resembles a diamond perched on a microphone.

“There are lots of social functions in music,” Choi said. “It could be for entertainment. It could be for ritual. It could also be for community building. K-pop culture makes you want to be part of the community.”

Despite its name, K-pop isn’t defined by a single musical style. Instead, Choi describes it as performance-centered music presented by idols. These artists are trained by entertainment companies, often starting in their early teens.

In the United States, K-pop first gained traction among Korean Americans before spreading through other Asian American communities in the early 2000s. In 2012, Psy galloped his way into the American mainstream with his viral hit “Gangnam Style.” The music video was the most viewed video on YouTube for five years.

The real turning point came in 2017 when the boy band BTS won the Billboard Music Award for Top Social Artist, a fan-voted category.

Unlike traditional celebrity culture where the musicians are often viewed as gifted, Choi said the relationship between idols and fans feels more equal in K-pop culture.

Previously in CUriosity

Why does Colorado have so many hot springs, and are they at risk?

Or read more CUriosity stories here

Through livestreams, social media and subscription messaging platforms, fans can communicate with idols directly on a daily basis.

Because most idols debut as teenagers, fans often watch them grow, mature and eventually become full-fledged artists launching their own solo careers. Fans ride every high and low with the artists, and growing alongside them is what makes K-pop so irresistible.

“It feels like you’re building a history together,” Choi said.

This connection motivates fans to organize campaigns, translate music videos and promote their favorite artists. According to a 2024 survey by the South Korean government, more than 200 million people across 119 countries identify as fans of Korean culture, with the majority focused on K-pop.

By 2022, BTS had taken home 12 Billboard Music Awars, breaking a 17-year record previously held by Destiny’s Child. BLACKPINK headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2023. Another girl group called Twice is currently on a world tour with a Denver stop in April.

The popularity of Korean music also encouraged people in the United States to take up language lessons. Duolingo, a language learning app, saw a 22% growth in Korean learners in the United States last year.

“You can definitely enjoy music without understanding the language,” Choi said. “But K-pop opens up a whole new world for people to learn about other cultures.”

Stephanie Choi, assistant professor of ethnomusicology at CU Boulder and a K-pop fan, talks about why this music genre has gained widespread popularity beyond South Korea.

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Judge Susan Blanco named to Colorado Supreme Court

Megan M Rogers — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 19:38:43 +0000

Judge Susan Blanco named to Colorado Supreme Court Megan M Rogers Wed, 02/25/2026 - 12:38

Gov. Jared Polis named the Honorable Susan Blanco, who has ties to CU Boulder, to the Colorado Supreme Court.

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Exploring the ethics of AI: Can we use tools like ChatGPT consciously?

Megan M Rogers — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 22:10:38 +0000

Exploring the ethics of AI: Can we use tools like ChatGPT consciously? Megan M Rogers Tue, 02/24/2026 - 15:10

As tech advancements speed up, how can we best incorporate AI tools at school and work? Read more from Nikolaus Klassen, a business analyst at Google, who teaches Applied AI Ethics at the ATLAS Institute.

As tech advancements speed up, how can we best incorporate AI tools at school and work? Get Nikolaus Klassen's take. He's a business analyst at Google, who teaches Applied AI Ethics at the ATLAS Institute.

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Nextdoor labor

Megan M Rogers — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 20:38:37 +0000

Nextdoor labor Megan M Rogers Tue, 02/24/2026 - 13:38

Does using Nextdoor make you more likely to support aggressive policing tactics? A new paper from two College of Communication, Media, Design and Information experts sheds interesting light on the platform.

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Scholar considers language, identity and the fight over shared symbols

Megan M Rogers — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 21:20:01 +0000

Scholar considers language, identity and the fight over shared symbols Megan M Rogers Thu, 02/19/2026 - 14:20

Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine

CU Boulder linguistics researcher Kate Arnold-Murray studies what a Facebook fight reveals about identity.

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As ICE arrests reach record highs, percent with criminal record plummets

Lisa Marshall — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:58:11 +0000

As ICE arrests reach record highs, percent with criminal record plummets Lisa Marshall Wed, 02/18/2026 - 15:58

Lisa Marshall

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested more people per day in 2025 than at any time in the past decade, according to new research by CU Boulder economists. Meanwhile, the percentage of ICE arrests involving people with a criminal record reached a near-historic low.

Labor economist Chloe East

The analysis of hundreds of thousands of arrests, published as part of the National Bureau of Economic Research working paper series, also shows that ICE tactics changed substantially between the first and second Trump administrations, with more arrests now made in community gathering places like schools and workplaces. Previously, ICE typically detained individuals who were already in law enforcement custody, the authors said.

“There has been a lot of rhetoric and news coverage in the past year about what ICE is doing, but there has been a gap in comprehensive, data-driven evidence,” said author Chloe East, a labor economist and associate professor of economics. “We wanted to know: What is ICE doing that is different? And is the political promise of going after the ‘worst of the worst’ truly bearing out? Our results reveal that the reality of immigration enforcement diverges sharply from the public narrative.”

For the study, East analyzed federal data, obtained through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, on all ICE arrests from October 2015 to October 2025.

The study found that, early in each of President Donald Trump’s terms in office, his administration delivered on its promise to increase immigration enforcement. For example, in the first 10 months of Trump’s first term, average daily ICE arrests rose to 435, up 43% from President Barack Obama’s final year in office. In the first 10 months of Trump’s second term, average daily ICE arrests soared to 821, up 170% from President Joe Biden’s final year in office.

But that increased enforcement did not translate to increased arrests of convicted criminals, the study found.

Just 37% of ICE arrests during Trump’s first 10 months in office in 2025 involved individuals with criminal convictions. That’s down from 52% in Biden’s final year in office, 70% in Trump’s first year of his first term, and 79% in Obama’s final year.

“We found that there is an inverse relationship between the number of arrests that ICE makes and ICE’s ability to target people with a criminal conviction, and this pattern has been much more dramatic following Trump’s second inauguration,” said East.

Top regions for ICE arrest surges in 2025

Atlanta: Up 228%
Boston: Up 224%
Denver: Up 211%
El Paso: Up 283%
San Diego: Up 530%
Washington, D.C.: Up 312%

Note: These figures pertain to broader ICE Areas of Responsibility headquartered in these cities.

Targeting communities

The study also found stark changes between the first and second Trump administration in the way ICE arrests are being conducted.

During the enforcement surge after Trump’s first inauguration, only 22% of arrests were “community arrests” (made in public places like schools, churches, workplaces and on the street). The rest were “law enforcement arrests,” in which ICE collaborates with local law enforcement to detain someone already in custody. In contrast, in the first 10 months of Trump’s second term, nearly half of ICE arrests were made in the community (up from only 19% in 2024 under the Biden administration).

“We found that ICE is acting at a much larger scale in the second Trump administration than the first, and that as arrests in the community spike, the percentage of those with criminal convictions falls,” said East.

Enforcement activity has not taken place evenly across the country, the study found. In 2025, Democratic strongholds were far more likely to see dramatic spikes in arrests, particularly community arrests.

For instance, in the enforcement area that includes Denver, which has a democratic mayor and governor, ICE arrests increased 211% at the beginning of Trump’s second term, with law enforcement arrests increasing 81% and community arrests increasing 265%.

Other exponential increases in arrests occurred in enforcement areas which include Boston; Atlanta; Washington, D.C; El Paso and San Diego.

Impact on public safety, economy

Previous studies have consistently shown that immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, are less likely to commit crimes than are people born in the United States.

East fears that by increasingly arresting those with no criminal record, heightened ICE enforcement efforts could backfire and make communities less safe by making law-abiding citizens afraid to interact with law enforcement to report crime.

Such efforts also hurt the economy, her other research has found.

“When you remove thousands of people from the labor market through arrest, detention and deportation, that alone has a harmful effect. But we also find that those who remain work less because they are afraid,” she said. “At the same time, we see no increases in any employment or number of hours worked for U.S.-born workers.”

East hopes that her findings will help policymakers from all parties develop more effective immigration policies.

“Overall, our data provide important new evidence that simply increasing the funding and scale of ICE activity is unlikely to improve public safety.”

Arrests in Colorado January 2024–October 2025

Graph illustrating the total daily ICE arrests in Colorado during Donald Trump's second presidential term, as well as the percentage of arrested people with criminal convictions.

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A new analysis of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests confirms that ICE tactics have changed since Trump’s first term, with more arrests made at workplaces and schools and in Democratic strongholds like Colorado.

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers participate in an operation in Los Angeles, Calif. in June, 2025. Credit: DHS photo by Tia Dufour

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers participate in an operation in Los Angeles, Calif. in June, 2025. Credit: DHS photo by Tia Dufour

Society, Law & Politics

A fresh take on the 'COVID generation': How the pandemic may have changed young people for the better

'Disasters are not equal opportunity events'

Lasting impacts

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TikTok doesn't change minds—it changes moods

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Preparing schools to respond to concerning behavior: Evaluation finds strong gains

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From the soccer field to the streets: How women are leading the resistance in Iran

First, how are you and your loved ones doing?

How was life different for women after the Islamic Republic took hold in 1979?

Soccer has long been a focal point of women’s resistance. Why?

The Hijab, or headscarf, has been central to many protests. Why?

What is the Women, Life, Freedom movement?

How is the war impacting people on the ground?

What is happening to the protesters there?

Could this military action advance the cause of women and girls in Iran?

If war is not the answer, what is?

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Scholar considers language, identity and the fight over shared symbols

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As ICE arrests reach record highs, percent with criminal record plummets

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Impact on public safety, economy

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