Two Americas.
Jerry Davich
This is not only a descriptor for two continents — North America and South America — but also for two conflicting realities in our deeply fractured country. Rich versus poor. The haves versus have-nots. Liberals versus conservatives. Republicans versus Democrats. Inclusive versus excluded.
The list is obvious and endless, and it’s a stark duality that has been in existence since the birth of our nation.
In 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr. popularized the concept of "Two Americas." In his speech “The Other America,” he described the harsh and opposing realities on race, poverty and inequality.
“There are literally two Americas. One America is beautiful … overflowing with the milk of prosperity and the honey of opportunity,” King told the world. “But tragically and unfortunately, there is another America that has a daily ugliness about it that constantly transforms the ebullience of hope into the fatigue of despair.”
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These two Americas still exist nearly 60 years later: The America of the wealthy and privileged, and the America of people who live from paycheck to paycheck. I am a member of the latter group.
Politics has historically been used as a weapon to ensure this divisiveness, but also as an illusion to empower the powerless. Tens of millions of Americans today are living paycheck to paycheck but they feel wealthy and privileged because of their political alliance. They’re still just as cash strapped as they were last year or 10 years ago, but they feel emboldened by partisan politics.
Politics is the true deity in America. People can’t go a day without praying to it for salvation or preying on it for revenge. They worship it like a god and hail its perceived messiahs from both sides of the political aisle. It comforts their despair. It fuels their rage. It confirms their fears.
Trouble is, politics is predicated on power and polarization. In our country, it has perpetuated two Americas. Both come with very distinct visions of what the United States stands for and what it should be.
“We the people” means different things to both Americas.
Supporters of the current presidential administration are convinced their America is back on track toward what it was meant to be, created by our Founding Fathers. Critics of this administration are convinced our nation is resembling Germany in the late 1930s.
These are the dual Americas that coexist on this continent. And the situation will only get more divisive, volatile and ugly. Partisan politics welcomes this binary reality like politicians welcome power.
One of the inherent problems with this us-versus-them dynamic is that both sides refuse to concede any progress from opposing leaders. Both sides would rather die on their sword of political alliance than acknowledge any benefits from their perceived enemies.
For example, I know critics of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk who are hoping our economy crashes, the stock market tanks and inflation rises. It would be catastrophic for our nation but considered a victory for their political stance.
The same warped and shortsighted view emerged from critics of former President Joe Biden and his Democrat predecessors in the White House. Regardless of any benefits to our country, critics instead celebrated their flaws, sins and mistakes.
Another byproduct of two Americas is the contagion of “what-about-ism." Instead of admitting the faults or flaws of our preferred leader, we instinctively point out the faults or flaws of the other side’s leader.
Yes, it’s human nature. But it’s also as mature as a toddler’s temper tantrum.
Every day, I hear from both of these two Americas on my social media sites. They feud with each other through angry words, name-calling and conflicting visions of who we are as a country, and as a republic.
The sprawling 10-episode series “The Americas” recently premiered on TV, showing the "unique connectedness of the land that millions of people call home."
It’s a connectedness that seems impossible to reach in our nation of two Americas. Maybe this is the inevitable result of this grand experiment called the United States.
