It's Not Personal

Here’s some food for thought… it’s not about you. 
As an American who moved to another country, my nine year old self was slapped with the reality that Americans are not well liked. This opinion only affects me for one reason, if people treat me differently because of where I was born. Other than that, if some Canadian kids roast the States because they think that country has a lot of stupidity about it, I don’t give a heck. They aren’t talking about me specifically. When my birth country is despised it’s because of the smaller herd of yahoos making a loud mess of everything and ruining or hiding the good that is just as present as the bad.
When myself, or my friends say “kill all men” or “we hate men” or “men are problems”, we do not mean all men. However, there is the truth that not all men are guilty but all women are hurt. So, an amount smaller than the total traumatizes more than one woman per man. Ultimately this smaller percentage ruins or hides the wonderful men that do exist and treat women as equals and not objects. But those good men know they are not the ones being talked about when us women hold hate towards that specific gender.
I oftentimes say I hate people. Lots of people say that, especially when you have to deal with them all the time. I obviously don’t hate all people, but enough have screwed up in  a large way that it masks the lovely things folk do. I hate the scummy powerful people that only care about their own gain in life and their own wealth and mistreat others in order to maintain that. I hate customers, but not the ones that treat me like a person. I hate the ones that yell and throw fits and act like I'm beneath them just because I’m on the other side of a counter. I hate the people that bully and cheat and abuse and defile others because they want to, because they can.
My friend hates homeless people, not the ones who are just in a rough place in their lives. Not the ones who went down a slippery path and simply don’t have the support or resources to get them back on their feet. The drug addicts that lash out and attack and are genuinely dangerous and don’t care that they are. A few of her coworkers were approached in a threatening way, like by a person who wielded a broken bottle neck as a weapon. Another friend’s mother was viciously attacked at work where she had to tend to people like that. She doesn’t work with those people anymore. 
The boomer generation messed a lot of things up for the generations after them. There’s no denying that. With that said, not all boomers were involved, not all agreed with what was done, not all are to blame. Those ones, should therefore not take insult. Unless we are treating you worse or invalidating you and your struggles because of it, it’s not about you so why worry?
My friends have regaled tales of their middle school years, coming to the conclusion that teenage girls are insane. All three of us were teenage girls once but we know that none of us are the ones that were problems so we don’t feel insulted. Nevertheless a lot of teenage girls are mental and they swindle and lie and cause drama for seemingly no apparent reason. It may not be all, but it’s a large enough number for such a reputation to form.
If there is distaste for a broad category of something, it’s because enough has poisoned the integrity of said something. Enough Americans commit horrendous acts. Enough men harm women. Enough people betray other people. Enough drug addicts attack those around them. Enough boomers wrecked the future. Enough pubescent girls were nightmares. Enough happened and so that is what’s acknowledged and that is what’s seen. 
If you are taking offense to a statement like the ones above, you are part of the problem. If you are trying to defend yourself because you take it personally, you are guilty. Unless you are getting treated unequally solely due to the fact you fall into the same broad category that’s despised, you have no reason to get upset. Because it’s not about you.