There was a lot more welfare before Clinton killed it, plus college and schooling did not cost what they do now. Plus Unionism died as a result of the changing work force. That gave a power to workers and the middle classes that it has lost today.
Boomers benefitted from that in their early years.
The difference between the boomers and the people who started the Industrial Revolution is that Boomers knew about climate change, while the mass of people in the Industrial Revolution did not.
Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring in the mid-60s. There were laws enacted at the time who started the environmentalist movement, but it was ignored by the masses.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_Responsibility_and_Work_Opportunity_Act#:
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/06/who-killed-american-unions/258239/
