Political and social polarization are ripping our country apart. Unlawful and violent expressions of anger by the political right cannot be condoned. At the same time there’s a need to address the underlying causes of this anger. Kirk Schneider Ph.D., psychologist at Columbia University in New York, notes that “existential fear is at the heart of what drives polarization.” He cites a sense of insignificance and lack of belonging, or alienation, as driving political divides and leading to hostility toward people whose perspectives seem different and frightening.
Real wages have barely risen since 1979, especially for low- and middle-income workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. People may no longer expect their living conditions to improve. Globalization and automation have changed the workplace for everyone, but have disproportionately displaced blue collar workers from jobs paying wages allowing for support of families. As needs of employers change, and jobs shift from one geographic locale to another, social ties are disrupted.
In a more automated workplace, increasing emphasis on impersonal metrics of productivity eclipse the importance of personal relationships and increase worker alienation. In short, many lower to middle-income families, whose lives were well-ordered, are now stressed by social and economic change. They fear they cannot adapt rapidly enough to maintain their place in the world. This loss of social and economic stability for many Americans is even more painful given growing income disparities, as displayed starkly in social media.
A life-threatening pandemic has heightened the lower and middle-income right’s sense of powerlessness. It has disrupted the human relationships that bind communities together. Sadly, for the right, the government is not seen as a source of help, despite record-breaking rapidity of vaccine development and distribution and enhanced unemployment and other support payments for the public.
The systematic denigration of government initiated by Reagan in the 1980s, and sustained by the Republican party, only feeds into the desperation and isolation of the working and middle class right. Minorities, who are seen as favored by government and competing for limited resources, are scapegoated. The right’s sense of displacement is aptly reflected in the chants of demonstrators in Charlottesville who asserted that “The Jews will not replace us!”
There has been an increase in crimes targeting minorities across the board, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center and FBI data. Awareness of differences, rather than the shared interests of groups, is heightened. Social media often intensify misunderstandings between groups, as Tania Israel, Ph.D. psychologist at University of California at Santa Barbara, notes in her book, “Beyond Your Bubble: Dialogue Across Political Lines,“ published in 2020. Survival fears drive affiliation with groups who promise protection and offer a compelling narrative about who is responsible for a group’s misery.
A sense of powerlessness can lead to magical thinking and a desire for radical action to redress grievances. Just as the Luddites in early 19th century England destroyed the textile weaving machines that displaced them from their jobs, today’s disgruntled groups strike out against the symbols of their oppression. Fear overrides reason and gives rise to conspiracy theories, for example, that Democrats are predatory pedophiles, that election results were rigged by the “deep state” and should be tossed out, or that vaccines contain government tracking devices.
The appeal of these conspiracy theories is that they offer explanations, outlets for anger, and a sense of belonging to those feeling cast off or ignored. In his research, Jay Van Bavel Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at New York University, confirms that that right wing extremist groups offer a sense of purpose as well as a sense of belonging. Psychologist Abraham Maslow, in his ground breaking paper, “A Theory of Human Motivation,” published in 1943, emphasizes that belonging is a fundamental human need, only slightly less urgent than the need for food, safety and shelter.
Pointing out the irrationality of the right’s thinking is not persuasive. Devaluation of their belief systems reinforces their solidarity and sense of being demeaned by liberal intellectuals. Members of the blue-collar right need to feel that their very real anxieties about their livelihoods are taken seriously. Storming the Capitol, plotting to overthrow the government, or holding Nazi or KKK demonstrations are measures of desperation. These groups need to find an audience which hears their grievances and can act on them effectively.
In terms of economic issues, the Democratic party should be a natural ally to lower- and middle-income members of the right. The Democratic Party supports programs which benefits these families but has not communicated this alignment of interests with a visceral appeal that matches that of the Republican right or the evangelical churches. There is a danger that the Democratic party doesn’t see beyond the racism of the disaffected right to recognize their economic and other social grievances. Helping to dissolve these groups’ misdirected racism depends on a willingness to hear the right’s concerns about other economic, social, and family issues.
Most mainstream Protestant churches have been remarkably silent on issues of social and economic justice and have not challenged evangelical churches’ messages of racism and sexism. Nor have they reached out to alienated whites in an emotionally appealing way. Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, President of Repairers of the Breach and Co-Chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, understands how to use a spiritual and moral movement to bridge differences among groups and establish a community of interest.
Rev. Barber is making inroads because he understands that mobilization of those who feel left behind is a very labor intensive, up close and personal effort, which must acknowledge the soul searing impact of economic hardship. He understands demoralization and the need to restore hope to the disenfranchised. He offers an emotionally appealing alternative to what he calls the “false moral narrative of Christian nationalism.” His grass roots style of organizing, secular as well as spiritual, may serve as a model for the Democratic party in outreach to the alienated whites of the right.
Democrats need to develop outreach to the blue collar right, which relies on face to face personal contacts, especially in small towns and rural areas. Rather than canned messages on major TV networks and social media, Democrats need to “listen to and not talk at” people and ask what they need in a respectful way. More personal interactions offer an opportunity to rebut distorted messaging by media. This strategy can capitalize on preexisting small local organizations like Lyons Clubs, Rotary Clubs, volunteer fire departments and other social groups. Democrats need to cultivate local leaders who become trusted messengers and organize informal meetings with political candidates. Beto O’Rourke, when running for the US Senate in 2018, drove to every county in Texas and pressed the flesh at almost every cross roads town, county court house, and country store. He came closer to winning than Republicans expected because he showed up.
Outreach efforts need to focus on the bread and butter issues that President Joe Biden is promoting in his Infrastructure and Build Back Better bills: jobs, expanded access to health care, preservation of local hospitals, highways, bridges, and farm to market roads, availability of broad band, controlling prescription drug costs, and supports for families like child care and elder care. Democrats need to identify radio stations serving local and rural areas and invest in messages tied to local concerns. Most of all, they need to deliver their message with inspiration and fire in the belly and not be sidetracked by attacks from obstructive Republicans. The Democratic Party needs to reclaim protection of family values as a core part of its mission.
Democrats can be guided by the work of Dr. Kirk Schneider who has spent the last 15 years developing small dialogue groups to help members understand group differences and move toward “constructive conversations.” In his book, “The Depolarizing of America: A Guidebook for Social Healing,” published in 2020, he describes the work of the Braver Angels, a group dedicated to bridging political divides. These very personalized approaches to reducing alienation are time consuming, but effective. Democrats can draw on these strategies to reconnect with those who feel left behind in cities, and especially in rural and small town America, who should be natural constituencies. To ignore the fundamental need of the members of the right for economic security, for recognition, and for a place in society is to risk destabilization of our society as a whole.
Bonny Gardner, a psychologist in Austin, Texas, grew up in the D.C. area and did research on rural Kentucky residents for her doctoral dissertation in cultural anthropology.
From The Progressive Populist, January 1-15, 2022
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