Guest Blog: College Bowl Reflection

“My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” - John F. Kennedy

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In his inaugural address in January 1961 former President John F. Kennedy addressed all Americans, calling them into accountability and urging them to serve instead of being served, but deeper than that, he urged them to work together as one unified group to discover what it truly means to be an American. This statement, though at the time not controversial, now begs the question, what did he mean when he said “My fellow Americans”? Did he mean just the Republicans or just the Democrats? No, I would venture that he meant all Americans across all party lines. JFK believed that we are all called to a higher mission. A mission to forgo the idea that the country or the opposite party owes them something, but instead, remember that we have a government of the people and for the people and it is our duty and our privilege to collaborate, not just debate, to make America the best that it possibly can be. Today, this statement of unity is often lost, with nearly three-quarters of all Americans regarding those who belong to the opposing party to have negative traits.¹ This detrimental part of the American reality is being 1combated by a few organizations, one of which is Unify America. Unify America is an organization that goes beyond party lines to connect Americans who disagree and allow them venue to have personal and civil conversations. I recently had the privilege to do the Unify America challenge and I am grateful for the experience that I had.

Unify America Challenge

When I first logged into Unify America I had no idea what to expect. I was being put into an online meeting with a stranger from across the country who I already knew disagreed with me on nearly everything. Needless to say, the idea of Unify America gave me great pause. This being said, when I logged on and spoke with a fellow student named Anna I was pleasantly surprised with what I discovered. Anna was an engineering student in north Ohio. During this hour-long conversation we had, I learned quite a bit about her political ideas and what she believes is best for the world. I was pleased to find that she was very respectful and had many well-formulated opinions, but even better than that, in many cases, we both wanted the same things.

Our conversation began with talking about the weather. Anna was bundled up next to a space heater with a blanket on because in Ohio it was 25 degrees Fahrenheit. Our conversation was often interrupted by the sound of the wind howling outside her dorm room. At the time I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt with the California sun blazing through my window. The differences between us did not stop at the weather and I often found myself disagreeing with much of what Anna was saying. Our first disagreement was a discussion on socialized healthcare. Though we disagreed on the means, both Anna and I agreed that all Americans should have the ability to stay healthy. This trend of respectful conversation continued through even some uncomfortable topics such as abortion. On this topic, Anna and I greatly disagreed but I did my best to be positive and understanding, even when it was clear that my opinion made her uncomfortable. Eventually the question of whether or not colleges should allow free speech quickly developed into whether the First Amendment right to free speech should be protected at all. This is an idea that I am very passionate about and I strongly opposed Anna, yet we remained conversational, and by the end, we understood each other’s points of view much better.

Though our conversation brought up many differences, we did find many similarities. We both agreed that something had to change in government and that polarization was helping no one. Both of these ideas fueled our passion for personal growth and allowed us to further engage in our conversation and work to understand each other and simultaneously the other side of US politics.

I am overall grateful for my Unify America experience because, for one of the first times in my life, I had the opportunity to talk to someone from thousands of miles away about a country that we both love. This conversation gives me hope for the future of America because it is so easy to be divided and though we can communicate with people all around the world, we still must make an effort to befriend those with different opinions. I believe this should be instituted in future classrooms because it gave me real-life experience on how to have a civil conversation with someone I disagree with.

Polarization and Tribalism

Despite organizations such as Unify America, polarization is a growing problem in the United States. One of the reasons for this polarization is that though technology has connected the world, it still drives us apart. Though we are more unified and many issues have ceased to exist, the two main topics that divide Americans do so more effectively than ever before. These issues are abortion and party affiliation.² The reason for this seems to be identity politics, meaning that as citizens of the country, we adhere to a particular party and that party becomes who we are, thus transforming even those with slight differences into our advisories.³

Identity politics create a phenomenon called biased dislike in which a person will assign negative personality traits to a particular person based on their beliefs. An example of this would be instead of acknowledging someone that doesn’t mow their lawn regularly to simply have a different lawn care philosophy, one would considering them to be a “bad neighbor”.⁴ This idea that people with slight ideological differences are no longer just different but that these beliefs determine their character is very dangerous. This is largely accredited to what psychologists call tribalism. Tribalism is a way of viewing the world in which those who look the same as you or have the same opinions as you are your tribe, and anyone else is different and therefore your enemy. With this contagious mindset, an individual is seen to be no different from the group they identify with. This leads to, in the minds of others, that person taking on all negative perceptions of said group upon themselves.⁵

In recent years this idea of tribalism and Identity politics has shifted into what is now called “Common enemy Identity Politics”.⁶ This is the idea that instead of a group being 6connected because of their agreements, they are connected because of a common “enemy”. This has been seen frequently in the past elections, but specifically in the 2020 presidential election. In 2020 with Donald Trump as the incumbent, it seemed that few were particularly excited to vote for Joe Biden or Donald Trump, but more than that, there was a strong fervor to dethrone Trump or prevent Biden. During this time there were many anti-Trump rallies with protesters holding signs with statements such as “Love Trump’s Hate” and “Dump Trump”. These signs show a sentiment that is not elevating his opponent but degrading Trump. This idea of common enemy identity politics creates a toxic type of government system that degrades the social landscape of America. Instead of rallying around a politician, we rally against one, creating an enemy of anyone who stands in our way. This creation of a public enemy as discussed previously turns any supporter of that “enemy” into an enemy themselves. This tears apart families, friends, churches, and many more social spaces that once served to provide socialization. Instead, these places along with online groups serve as echo chambers, advancing the detrimental view of other Americans even further.

Conclusion

Recently in American politics, affective polarization has degraded both our political and social landscape. Tribalism amongst party members and even among common citizens paints slight political disagreements as wars between enemies and America continue to grow even more divided. Though this may be the case, there are still slivers of hope that show civility and oneness, and Unify America is one of those. My experience talking to Anne for the Unify America Challenge showed me how civility can reign supreme despite differences. I was given a lens to see the good of Americans even across party lines and I believe it is an experience that everyone should have at some point. I am grateful to have had this experience and hope what I have expressed can be preserved so that one day the statement “My fellow Americans” refers to not just one party but to the entirety of a unified nation.

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References

1. IVÁN SCHULIAQUER, and GABRIEL VOMMARO. 2020. “Introduction: Political Polarization, Legacy Media and Social Media. Elements for a Research Agenda.” Revista Saap 14 (2): 235–47. https://doi.org/10.46468/rsaap.14.2.i.
2. Pew Research Center. “As Partisan Hostility Grows, Signs of Frustration with the Two-Party System.” Pew Research Center - U.S. Politics & Policy, August 9, 2022. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2022/08/09/as-partisan-hostility-grows-signs-of-frustration-with-the-two-party-system/.
3. Sotirakopoulos, Nikos. 2021. Identity Politics and Tribalism: The New Culture Wars. Societas Ser, V.74. Luton, Bedfordshire: Imprint Academic
4. Stone, Daniel F. 2023. Undue Hate : A Behavioral Economic Analysis of Hostile Polarization in US Politics and Beyond. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.