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| Evan Clark Class of 2020 |
“Don’t talk about politics and religion,” so the saying goes. This advice no doubt appeals to countless Americans who fear the consequences of revealing their political viewpoints to family members, friends, and co-workers who might disagree with them. Amid the rancorous partisan atmosphere in the United States today, it has become increasingly difficult for many Americans to engage in open, respectful political dialogue with those whom they disagree. This difficulty does not arise from voter apathy. Although there are some in our country who could care less about their civic responsibilities, a great number of the citizens of our country continue to care about the state of American politics. For instance, last year I came across a news article about a recent study which found Americans feel more stressed about the state of the country than about any other issue. Clearly, Americans recognize the importance of the political process. However, in the contemporary United States it is often challenging to build strong acquaintances and friendships among individuals of differing political viewpoints. The political divisions in our country today derive not just from differences of opinion, but from differences of background, religion, moral values, and views of human nature. In particular, the divide between the political beliefs of Americans who live in suburbs and rural areas and Americans who live in urban areas has become greater than ever. Thus, Americans are caught between a desire to take part in the country’s political dialogue and a fear of ruining relationships over contentious political discussions.
With the country more divided than at any time since the Civil War era and perhaps the late 1960s, I entered the 2018 Harvard Institute of Politics Conference eager to learn new ways to bridge Americans’ massive partisan divisions. While attending the conference with my fellow McConnell Scholar Erica Gaither, I soaked up the advice of distinguished individuals like Scott Jennings on how to carry on respectful political discussions with individuals of differing political viewpoints. I also participated in activities such as indirect engagement, in which I worked alongside other students to analyze a variety of viewpoints on an issue and determine how a rational individual could come to hold such viewpoints. In addition to the program’s activities, I got to know a diverse group of students from around the country, many of whom espoused different political values from my own. The political differences between me and most of the other students attending the conference did not impede my social interactions with them. On the contrary, I found it intriguing to spend time with students of varying viewpoints, hoping to learn from them and to understand how they came to hold their opinions. In so doing, I gained greater respect for those whose views differed from my own and was able to respect on the rationales for my own beliefs. Therefore, I know it is not only possible, but also desirable, for Americans to engage with those of other political opinions.
Unfortunately, stereotypes about individuals of particular political viewpoints often hampers Americans’ willingness to partake in healthy, bipartisan dialogue. Many Americans hold low opinions of the values and character of citizens on the other side of the political spectrum from their own. Although partisan individuals in the media emphasize what they perceive to be negative attributes of those with particular political views, everyday Americans have become increasingly mistrustful of citizens who do not share their political values. Americans on both sides of the political spectrum accuse each other, explicitly or implicitly, of being closed-minded and out of touch with the so-called average American. Liberals run the risk of believing stereotypes which claim most or all conservatives espouse outdated values, don’t care about the poor, are religious bigots, or hold racist and xenophobic views. Likewise, conservatives must be wary to not accept stereotypes which portray most or all liberals as opponents of capitalism, foes of religion, and proponents of moral relativism.
Not only are these stereotypes divisive and unrepresentative of a great number of conservatives and liberals, but they are also deeply troubling for our national unity. Even with our vast political differences, Americans are still one nation and we must act like one nation if we are to rise to meet the challenges which will confront us in the years ahead. Russia will undoubtedly attempt to continue its interference in U.S. elections, posing a grave threat to the integrity of our republic’s democratic process. While making a pretense that it does not threaten U.S. interests, China draws ever nearer to its goal of overtaking the United States as the world’s greatest superpower and molding the world into its authoritarian image. The ever-present threat of terrorism and environmental pressures pose additional challenges to our country. Internally, the nation faces enduring controversies concerning the identity of the country, the proper boundaries of equality and liberty, and which morals and values should hold sway in the United States. We cannot allow our partisan divisions to consume us, or else we will miss the opportunities to respond to these challenges. Instead of tearing ourselves apart, let us have the unity and the resolve to meet the threats and crises of our age head on.
When our country has faced imminent dangers in the past, Americans have banded together to confront those dangers. The twenty-first century is shaping up to be another crucial test of the endurance in our nation’s great experiment in republican government. We as Americans must recognize what we hold in common is greater than our differences and must strive together to beat back the threats that lie before us. Even though our partisan divisions seem daunting, we as Americans must remember our country is not as divided as it was during the Civil War. If the country could emerge whole from that cataclysmic struggle, it can emerge whole from the divisiveness of our day. When we reject ignorance and stereotypes about our fellow citizens and seek to learn from them as human beings with similar hopes, dreams, and values as our own, we will understand what unites us is stronger than what divides us.
Evan Clark, of Owensboro, Ky., is a sophomore McConnell Scholar studying Spanish, History, and Political Science.