The original motto of the USA and its’ replacement 180 years
later offers an interesting glimpse into the cultural divide that exists in the
21st century. “E Pluribus
Unum” – Out of many, One! This was the
original motto of the US. It was never
officially adopted but appeared on the Great Seal of the USA. In fact, it still appears on the Great
Seal.
For nearly two centuries it served as a reminder that our
nation rose out of many different peoples from all over the world. Some of us were born here before the first
Europeans arrived. Some of us came in
search of a new life. Some were brought
here in the chains of slavery. Others
came here as refugees fleeing persecution; religious, cultural, and
political. Some came to be with family
who has already found a new home.
“E Pluribus Unum” – Out of many, One! It served us well until the 1950’s when we
became frightened by our own diversity.
At the end of WWII, our under-current of Anglo Saxon superiority began
to be challenged by changes. Jim Crow
had held firm against the cultural strongholds of racism until July 26, 1948
when President Harry S. Truman issued an executive order establishing equality
of treatment and opportunity in the U. S, Military regardless of race. The march toward civil rights had gained a
tenuous toehold in the American Culture.
This along with women beginning to use the right to vote that they had
won four decades before as well as the increase in non-European immigration
following the war made the ruling caste of white males very nervous. Many felt that they had personally defeated
Japanese, German, and Italian Dictators and therefore had earned the right to
govern not only the government but all segments of society.
Internationally, tensions between the former allies in
WWII, namely the USSR, began to grow. A
junior Senator from Wisconsin capitalized on the growing fear and began a high-profile
campaign to root out the Communists in our government. The stalemate in Korea when the Chinese
joined in pushed our country past fear and into sheer terror of those who were
not like us.
In 1956, the U. S. Congress adopted the first “Official”
motto, “In God We Trust.” The Words “under God” were also added to the
Pledge to the flag. The words were added
to all currency of the US in 1957. It
was a way of distinguishing the U. S. from it’s greatest enemy that supported
state atheism. It was promoted as a way
of gaining God’s favor in protecting us from the changing world of ideas and
people in the United states. Until the
1950’s Socialism was an accepted political orientation that included people
like Helen Keller, W.E.B. Dubois, and Upton Sinclair. But it became the tar that led to the casting
out of anyone who did not support the policies and beliefs of the Anglo-Saxon,
male ruling class. Diversity was no
longer tolerated.
We have been fighting this diversity/anti-diversity war
for the last 70 years. Every step toward
acceptance and tolerance has had a strong backlash. In fact, the recent history of our nation is
a catalogue of this on-going cultural divide.
The Civil Rights and Feminist Movements of the 1960’s and 1970’s were
met with the anti-diversity response of the Reagan Years in the 1980’s.
The growing resistance to discrimination against LGBTQ
and the rebirth of the Women’s Movement in the 1990’s saw a corresponding
backlash that was fueled by the paranoia that grew out of 9/11. The
election of Barak Obama declared that a diverse population would be heard at
the ballot box. To which the Tea Party
and other 1950’s John Birch Society members came together, looking toward 2016. The Black Live’s Matter Movement, and the
move toward LGBTQ rights developed their resolve even more. And with the
nomination of a woman, the latest round of an anti-diversity movement culminated
in the election of the 45th President of the United States. The battle continues as everyone is now
gearing up for 2018 and 2020.
Our divisions are the result of an historical pattern of
disagreement in both political and cultural goals. The more closely we examine these two facets
of American life, the more divided we appear. But, if we will take the time to pan out a bit
we can see much more that unifies us.
Both of these perspectives are vital to our way of life.
Why are the divisions so important? As a wise friend on FB noted, unity without
diversity is mere uniformity. Such
uniformity is a playground for evil.
Most old ideas and the status quo go unchallenged. As ideas and “commonsense’ slowly evolves
over time, changes occur without any resistance. In fact, the highest value becomes protecting
what we have “always done” whether we have “always done” it or not.
Likewise, diversity without unity creates a playground
for chaos. Shared identity is lost, and
we become a tribal cultural engaged in constant cultural wars. We divide and divide until our fragmented
society completely collapses.
A unity that grows out of our diversity helps us to
discover that which is most important to all of us. It demands a consensus that is built on what
we share. Our unity becomes a hard-won
fact of our national life. It demands a
diversity of voices to keep it fresh and alive and growing.
The men and women who believed in “E Pluribus Unum”
recognized that our republic operates by the consent of the governed. If there is no consent among the governed, no
sense of unity among “We the people…” there can be no consent by those who
govern. We cannot blame our lack of
unity on those who sit in Washington.
Until “We the People…” sit down and do the hard work of building a
consensus with our neighbors on what unifies us, we shall continue to live at
the mercy of the twin playground bullies, chaos and evil.
Start a cultural dialogue on what unites us? Let start by identifying those parts of our
life together that are most important to us and our nation. Then let us build on those seeds and rebuild
a nation of which it can truly be said, “E Pluribus, Unum!”
