The Moral Tones in Our Politics

Since the 2016 election, there has been a palpable discomfort among friends who supported different candidates. Thanksgiving table was tenser, and some friendships have chilled. After the 2012 election, on the other hand, even though people may have ardently disagreed with you, it was still easy to be friends. The current division is not going away anytime soon. There is a moral tone in our politics, one where someone is not only wrong politically, but is also condemned to be morally bad because of the politics they espouse. While this moral tone may be here to stay, the tension doesn’t have to.

One of the primary reasons for the moral tone in our politics is that each of us have different values and approaches to solving societal problems, and this is reflected in our politics. Part of the reason that the moral overtones became so loud this past election is because instead of dog whistling to racism and bigotry, as many politicians have done in the past, Donald Trump used a loudspeaker. Hillary Clinton supporters then felt emboldened in making moral judgments against those who supported Trump, hence the infamous “deplorable” comment. Furthermore, Clinton and her supporters were enormously confident that she would win the election, empowering them to proclaim their opinions louder and louder. They assumed winning would prove that the majority of Americans did in fact share their values, and were not willing to tolerate Trump’s racism.

This divide, however, did not end after the 2016 election. People have realized that policies and politics inherently reflect our values. As Joe Biden said, “Don’t tell me what you value. Show me your budget, and I will tell you what you value.” The health care debate this summer demonstrated that while one’s preferred policy incorporates their philosophy on the ways to improve society, it also reflects their values. Some feel strongly that healthcare is a right to which all citizens are entitled, while others believe that the government should not interfere in the healthcare market.

This is a huge disagreement, and it would be foolish to ignore the fact that this policy affects the lives of millions of people. These people could end up losing their health insurance, with potentially devastating consequences, as many activists brought up through personal narratives. Such divisions will bring out deeply-held beliefs. These differences are not something to brush off, as they reveal our world view and values. It evokes a much stronger emotion once you realize that someone you care about has different values than you, as opposed to merely a disagreement over policy. We like to imagine that all of the people we have relationships with are likeminded and share our values, but this is simply not the case.

This need not be distressing to think about. Reasonable people disagree, and our democracy was made to allow disagreement. Just because people disagree over deeply held values does not make them bad people. That way of thinking is dangerous. Not only does it hurt people who have good intentions, it lessens our authority to call out true evil. We must be very careful about what we designate as morally bad. Racism is evil, but having a liberal or conservative solution is not. Beliefs of superiority that reject the equality of all human beings are detestable and detrimental to our society. Those are the beliefs and politics that must be called out. When someone supports policies like the “Muslim Ban,” or opposes policies like DACA (on principle, not whether the president has the power to enact the policy), there is no doubt that racism is prominent in their thinking. At the end of the day, however, almost everyone wants a better country to leave the next generation. While people may have different conceptions of what that better country looks like, as long as it is based in equality, we should keep in mind that people are working with good intentions. We can still be friends, family, or co-workers with those who have vastly different ways of thinking and values. Not only can we still maintain our relationships with them, we should work towards understanding why each person has different values and approaches and have compassion for one another. As John F. Kennedy said, “If we cannot now end our differences, at least we can help to make the world safer for diversity.”

[pullquote]Only by approaching one another in an honest manner, with an open mind and compassion can we work together to mend those gaps.[/pullquote]

If you care about your values, you should work towards convincing people of them. This moment of deep division in our country is also an opportunity. The gaps in our society have been exposed, allowing us to see them as they are, and not hide them. Only by approaching one another in an honest manner with an open mind and compassion can we work together to mend those gaps.

Reuben Siegman ’18 studies in the  College of Arts & Sciences. He can be reached at reuben.siegman@gmail.com.