. . .by Mark Scott, September 2012
E Pluribus Unum. . .Out of Many, One. . .the phrase printed on the Great Seal of the United States of America describes a vision where a great diversity of people and cultures comprise the “Oneness,” the overriding reality shared by ALL citizens of the United States. Regardless of any label, this is our common link on a vast pallette of individuality.
It seems such a simple and worthy concept. Why do we compromise and complicate this unity with derivative labels? Humans seem compelled to label everyone and everything: North Americans, African Americans, Latin Americans, Native Americans, Chinese Americans, Irish Americans, Jewish Americans, Christian Americans, Muslim Americans, AARP Americans, NRA Americans, Scottish Americans, Republican Americans, Democratic Americans, Liberterian Americans, Mexican Americans, Japanese Americans, Immigrant Americans, Arab Americans, Middle Eastern Americans, Gay Americans, Lesbian Americans, Transgender Americans, Yankee Americans, Patriotic Americans, Southern Americans, Mid-Western Americans, East Coast Americans, Slave-Owning Americans, Abolitionist Americans, West Coast Americans, Homeless Americans, Italian Americans–you understand the point. We miss the “One” in the “Many,” inadvertently, but sometimes we are intentional in our compartmentalization of “those people, those issues, those things.”
Surely only one word, “American,” is the one that should matter when we think, talk about, or talk to, our fellow country women and men. It is the term most accurately describing the commonality of our connection; the strength of that very identity defined by the myriad gifts and variety of cultures and people that define and express this multi-colored mosaic.
This seemingly chaotic explosion of peoples helps formulate an altruistic vision of a society where every voice is worthy of being heard. Disagreement, dialogue and compromise are good and necessary as we live and work WITH each other; respect an opposing point of view; develop a true sense of egalitarianism and along with the understanding that it is more important than winning; the good of the whole society trumping the desires of any individual; freedom to worship as well as the freedom NOT to worship. It sounds unattainable, yet it is as old as humanity and was the seminal foundation upon which America was founded. Yet from the beginning of the first settlements, our human tendency to impose our idea of conformity on our fellow citizenry was ever present. Pilgrim and Puritan quickly devolved into rigid, severe, dour peoples, intolerant of everything but the Truth. . .the Truth as they interpreted it. . .the very same environment that drove them out of their homelands! Do we ever learn from past mistakes! At this period in our history, banishment from the colony was the only true freedom, even if the price of that freedom, was estrangement and frequently, death.
Non-conformity is in the genetic make-up of Americans. It’s why we exist as an independent, free country. The early immigrants were folk who dreamed of a society where the liberty and weal of the entire citizenry was more important than the rights of any individual. As early as 1825, settlements known as “Utopian Societies,” germinated, grew and prospered– more than a hundred of them throughout this young land. Each group sought to establish a colony where people lived, worked, worshiped, played, and governed together for the benefit of the whole group. . .a communal society, an Early American version of Socialism. At the peak of this movement there were over 100,000 people participant in these experimental groups. Many groups were successful for a time, but eventually all faltered because there was no common way to financially sustain the commune, but the greatest challenge–everyone’s understanding of what constituted a Utopian Society was different! These groups fractured, divided and failed as people became less inclined to dialogue with each other, losing their original vision of a better place for all that required the abrogation of some individual rights to achieve a greater good. Consensus is very hard, tedious work and the resultant disfunction of not working for consensus is always fatal. It is a familiar story.
Polls, surveys, and interviews have established the growing frustration and disgust of the American public toward local, state and national political figures and processes. Where are the egalitarian women and men who could, would, and did see beyond the next election, working in the true interest of the people who elected them to office? Why do we continue to allow the complete annihilation of any opponent? How weak is an issue if it cannot stand or fall on its own merits or lack thereof, requiring discrediting it, and any who support it, in an effort to gain the edge over an opponent. We are constantly assaulted with half-truths, out-of-context quotes, and flagrant lies intended to persuade and frighten the electorate. Truth becomes unimportant and we all know it is happening yet we continue allowing it. WHY? It has become the normal way every political party operates, fostering enmity, mistrust and suspicion.
Disagreement among political women and men is a good thing. It is how we all learn and grow, regardless of political affiliation. It becomes negative when we have no respect for the beliefs and opinions of those with whom we disagree. Compromise is not a dirty word. In fact, it is the path toward better understanding of the world’s peoples and of our fellow Americans. When any person or group draws a line in the sand, the battle is lost. “I am right and you are wrong; there’s an end to it!” What an arrogant, insolent, and ill-educated reaction! It leaves no room for dialogue. Historically, almost every society fails where the will of a few is imposed on the many. We do not have to go back in the mists of history to see this. . .evidence the recent events of the Arab Spring as well as the continuing genocide and civil war in Syria. We know what the end result will be: the violent ouster of a corrupt, totalitarian regime. But at what cost? Do we never learn from history? Are Americans immune from such a fate? When we stop listening to others, marginalize those with whom we disagree and begin to operate by fiat rather than consensus, we are in dangerous territory. We ignore the warning signs at our peril and must learn to keep our ears open, our minds honed on facts, not rumors, and cultivate an honest desire to work together for the common good.
How can we reconfigure our understanding and civility toward each other? How can one person influence change? Why are we afraid of diversity? When will we recapture the ability to stand back and look at the greater benefit of any party’s/candidate’s platform, rather than making black and white decisions based on any single issue. When will we venture out of the cocoon of that which we know and understand, and begin to interact with people who are different, who do not believe the same way we do, who do not dress the same way, who do not live in “good” neighborhoods and attend “good” schools? Are we brave enough to cease using labels intended to isolate and demean, excluding “those people” from the club? Most of us are attracted to people like us and situations with which we are familiar. But we are forever sentenced with repeating the mistake over and over and over again. Remember the tale of Sisyphus, the Greek mythological King of Corinth who was condemned to spend eternity rolling a boulder up a hill only to have it roll back down when he neared the top. It is a tale with a universal Truth in the allegory. Do you think Sissy was forward-thinking, visionary? Not if you heed the metaphor. The only way we can begin to comprehend “those people” is to walk beside them and listen. . .listen until they cease to be “those people” and become “we people.” We have the power to change this myopic path and reform our world toward tolerance of each other. To remain as we are is to condemn us to a fate of degradation and decay. It is unethical, immoral, selfish, and unsustainable.
I suggest that we all begin by examining the language we use when speaking, to think before we throw labels around. How about a word or phrase a day to remind and retrain us to live as “Many in One?” Customize the list with your own aspirations. Here are a few suggestions: listen, be silent, respect the dignity of all people, hear, dialogue, compromise, together, unity, solidarity, fellow citizen, human being, one, altruistic, egalitarian, debate, open minded, accepting, non judgmental, affirming, Responding rather than Reacting, loving, global, us, we, together, jointly, assist, laughing. . .or, how about, “American?” What will you bring to our table?