“As polarized as we have been, we Americans are locked in a cultural war for the soul of our country.”

-Pat Buchanan, Former White House Communications Director 

Ever wondered why elections seem like a Saturday Night Live comedy skit lately? Why have people been more hysterical with phrases such as, “Those communists are destroying our country!,” or, “Those fascists are trying to win back the office!” Do they even know what half of these words mean? American Polarization is the direct cause of this political mess and has been for the past several decades within this great nation of ours. It has divided our parties and our people into groups that hate each other. In this article, we will discover where this phenomenon may have started, why it has a negative influence on the United States of America, and how we can change it. 

Where did American Polarization even come from? How has it developed into the stage we see today? Arguably, it began after the Civil War leading up to the modern day. Traditionally, before the Civil War, certain political parties would usually have the de facto lead for at least several terms or even a decade. A turning point of polarization could be seen with the Confederates’ secession from the Union to protect their interests in property, aka slavery, and the radical Republican coalition within the Republican Party, which was hellbent on completely eradicating slavery. It may be different politics, but it was a shift for both parties. Afterward, in the latter half of the twentieth century, for example, it devolved from one administration to another, with the Democrats and Republicans more visibly fighting over seats in Congress and the Senate. It wasn’t until the 1980s when the term “liberal” was first used negatively, as stated in, “1984: When Liberal Became a Dirty Word,” by Kenneth Janda, where he described the gradual process of Republicans using the word positively and with praise, to the sudden shift in 1984 to it being used negatively, and it continues to be used negatively. This also serves as proof that polarization has been a gradual process over time. 

What is American Polarization characterized as? It’s the spawn of partisan identification, which is a term that exists within political science that describes personal identification with one party over the other. So, someone who votes for the GOP would refer to themselves as a Republican and someone who votes for the Democratic Party would refer to themselves as a Democrat. This could lead to American Polarization, which is the process of moving away from a more centered political standpoint to opposite extremes, so Conservatives would get more Conservative and Liberals would get more Liberal. This is described in the Pew Research Article, “The polarization in today’s Congress has roots that go back decades,” by Drew Desilver, in which they found that, “Both parties have moved further away from the ideological center since the early 1970s. Democrats on average have become somewhat more liberal, while Republicans on average have become much more conservative.” This reinforces the idea that both sides of the political spectrum have continued to go to extremes. If both parties continue to go to the extreme, then how can anything be agreed upon in Congress? It would lead to even further partisan gridlock.

If American Polarization is painted to be this great divider in American society, how can we fix it? One of the first and most common ideas is to simply get to know the other group of people who disagree with you. Why do they think this is the right political stance and really to get to know them as people rather than vassals of a political party? In an article titled, “What Are the Solutions to Political Polarization?” by Lee De-wit, Sander Van Der Linden, and Cameron Brick, they mention that, “ The “contact hypothesis” suggests that getting to know each other can reduce prejudice between groups. However, social contact can be done well or badly. As we discussed in a previous article, following political opponents on Twitter can make people more extreme in their political views.” This contact hypothesis is a suggested solution: if we simply talk to each other, it can reduce prejudice or polarization between individuals, but it also states that if done incorrectly, it can worsen the symptoms. Merely trying to understand the other side can risk one’s political stance becoming more extreme. Ultimately, however, the only way to fix polarization is to spread awareness, let everyone know that the Republicans and the Democrats are getting more ideologically extreme, and be educated in politics so that we can have a healthy, educated democracy.

Trying to “treat” polarization is like trying to treat an unknown illness that was just discovered; in the meantime, it has existed for the past two centuries. I cannot tell you, the reader of this article, how to combat polarization, because I am not an expert; I’m merely trying to spread awareness on one of America’s biggest issues. But do put in the effort, try, and make a change, because that’s how we as Americans can change our political atmosphere for the better.