That is not a hyperbolic question.
America’s economic and political systems were founded on
individualism. Think of the free
enterprise system which has led to great prosperity as the result of entrepreneurship. And, of course, the Constitution enshrined
controls on government authority for the benefit of individual Americans.
Two hundred and fifty years later, it’s easy to forget
how truly revolutionary these principles were at the time. Of course, a focus on the individual as
independent from the group to which he “belonged” (whether race, national
origin, class, etc.) predated 1776. John
Locke comes to mind. Yet members of
societies around the world were divided due to heritage or occupation into
sub-groups (e.g. tribes).
America was to be different. The Bill of Rights was for individuals, not
groups. There was no royal line nor
recognized aristocracy. The United
States of America was designed to be very different, indeed. And is not that a large part of the reason
for our national success of the past 2 ½
centuries?
Alas, the commitment to these founding principles is
waning for many Americans and apparently is extinguished for a substantial
number of others.
National unity, patriotism, was grounded in the evolution of people’s
self-identification. It is no
meaningless cliché to say America is a land of immigrants (with the exception
of the American Indian – the only natives) for that is our heritage. We arrived with our particular identities,
countries of origin or otherwise. But,
in time, a person from Italy, for instance, may have viewed himself as “from
there” to becoming an Italian American than simply an American citizen whose
historical origin was usually little more than a footnote to his life. It was the melting pot in action.
Labels have returned.
Americans are increasingly identified by race, for instance. The person who used to be described as a “black
American” is now labeled “Black”. The
capitalization highlights the view that the individual’s race is on a par – if
not superior – to his identity as an American.
The same goes for hyphenations:
Asian-Americans, African-Americans, etc.
Those are all forms of “tribalism”. What matters from that perspective is not who you are, but what you are.
Your individual self is subsumed in the tribe. The perceived enemy of any member of the
tribe is cast as an enemy of all. Along
those lines, if the foe is a member of another tribe, all its members are
enemies, too.
Recognizing the existence of such tribal thinking
explains a lot of the ill affecting modern America.
Consider the Minneapolis police officer accused – and
convicted – of killing a black suspect.
From the perspective of individualism, that person was responsible for
his conduct and rightfully held accountable.
So why was a cop shot in Chicago as a result of what happened hundreds
of miles away? It makes sense only if
both police officers are members of the same tribe. They’re both cops.
Another example that doesn’t usually involve violence
but is corrosive to American society all the same. Political parties are becoming tribal. Many Republicans view Democrats (and
certainly vice versa) not merely as foes but as enemies of values they hold
dear.
Can this descent be halted? It certainly seems as if the fascination
among so many of us with what divides us is only increasing. Diversity training, wokeism, media approval, or indifference to identity-fueled rioting are continuing their upward trends. And all are antithetical to America’s
survival as a great and exceptional nation.
