In an earlier blog, The Power of Clan, I discussed the virtues of social cohesion and solid relationships on the longevity of life in a small Italian community in the 50’s, before its members assimilated into the larger culture. This was pretty much a closed society where membership to the clan came from one’s birthright. In this context, outsiders from surrounding towns were not considered part of the clan or tribe.
David French, columnist for the New York Times, recently published an article titled: The Rage and Joy of MAGA America.” In his essay, he described the MAGA (Make America Great Again) characteristics of many of the people in Nashville, Tennessee where he resides. He believed the following statement by freshman Republican Andy Ogles from Tennessee captured the essence of MAGA:
Hey guys, Congressman Andy Ogles here,
wishing you a happy blessed Fourth of July.
Hey, remember our founding fathers. It’s we
the people that are in charge of this country, not
a leftist minority. Look, the left is trying to
destroy our country and our family, and they’re
coming after you. Have a blessed Fourth of July.
Be safe, Have fun. God bless America.
Unlike the Italian community I alluded to in the Power of Clan, the above message to the MAGA tribe is one of negativity casting aspersions on what Ogles calls the “leftist minority.” Moreover, the above message reflects a combination of intense anger and real joy with a strong sense of belonging.
I liken the passion of the MAGA movement to a form of religious zeal where its strong faith places Donald Trump on a pedestal above the rest of us. But similarly, I regret to say, followers of the leftist Woke movement also have an emotional base where, once more, reason is lacking. These adherents have created their own language where race dominates their view of all activity in America. They have propagated what they call an antiracial bias in which the idea of color blindness no longer exists. John McWhorter, a black associate professor of linguistics at Columbia University, described this very same phenomenon in his book, Woke Racism. The subtitle of the book is: How a New Religion Has Betrayed Black America. I point out that Professor McWhorter is black to underscore the fact that the very emotionally triggered issue of race is more complicated than both the extremists on the left and the right would maintain.
In a recent YouTube presentation, The Legacy of Black Lives Matter, Afro-American commentators, Coleman Hughes and Thomas Chatterton Williams, point out that blacks are presumed to be one sided not allowing them to have conservative beliefs. Coleman Hughes questions this type of monolithic thinking among blacks. McWhorter, Hughes and Chatterton illustrate the fact that Afro-Americans do not necessarily see eye to eye on racial matters. McWhorter, for one, believes that socio-economic status, and not race, is the source of much of the anguish in America.
Unfortunately, social media has exacerbated these divisions by appealing to the instincts of the tribal right and left. Because hate mongers receive the most hits on social media platforms, moderate and reasonable discussion among the right and left is scarce.
John Wood Jr., Ambassador of the Braver Angels, has begun to tackle the issue of tribalism, noted in this essay. He has addressed the political polarities manifested by both the right and left. His approach has been to develop a community where people can comfortably disagree with one another on political issues rather than agree on them. Instead of one facing the fear engendered by social media regarding disagreement, voicing one’s true opinion is the standard espoused by Braver Angels.
In referring to the founding fathers’ different opinions expressed in the creation of our Constitution, Mr. Wood reminds us that dissension is not new to America. Perhaps if we learn how to disagree with each other in a humane way, we will begin to understand the obverse viewpoints of others. The allowance of other’s perspectives may pave the way to healing the grievances and wounds inherent in the polarities that currently afflict us. One of the goals of Braver Angels is to help dissenting parties develop the skills necessary to depolarize the way they think.
Mr. French concluded his article, by warning those that think like him, that replacing MAGA people’s beliefs requires understanding where their feelings of joy and rage, along with their sense of belonging, originate. The focus of Braver Angels is to teach us to listen to and understand the other side before we can rightfully disagree. It is my hope that this grassroots movement reaches our broken communities where people regard the other side as enemies rather than fellow Americans.
Dr. Bernard F. Natelson 