Can Democrats Break Out of Their Box?

For their own mental health & the good of the country, let's hope so

Photo by Ante Hamersmit on Unsplash (modified)

Eight years ago, during that parallel post-election period when Democrats were first stunned by a heretofore unimaginable Trump victory, I was a card-carrying member of the #Resistance. As such, I enjoyed a strong sense of solidarity with the vast sea of shocked and horrified Democrats around me in my hometown of Chicago. Of course, we were anything but happy about what was happening. Nonetheless, that feeling of partisan connection was nice — really nice.

Me (right) at the Women’s March in downtown Chicago in January 2017, holding my homemade protest sign featuring one of Shepard Fairey's full-page graphics from The New York Times. Happily, I did have the good sense to eschew the then-popular “Pussy Hat."

Fast forward eight years to the present, though, and that once-welcome sense of Blue State solidarity is no longer an option for me. That’s because since 2016, I’ve made a concerted effort to broaden my news and information sources to cover a much wider political spectrum — and in the process, to try to understand a bigger range of perspectives better. Consequently, I’ve become far more critical of the Democratic Party, realized that legacy media is partisan to the point of duplicitousness, and come to view Trump and the MAGA movement in ways that complicate the stock Blue State narrative beyond repair.

Most of the people I know and love, however, have not made such shifts. My political identity has evolved to Independent; they’ve remained staunch Democrats. My media diet now prioritizes independent voices such as The Free Press; they’ve remained loyal to legacy sources such as The New York Times. And most radically, controversially, and unacceptably of all: I’ve come to see things that I both like and dislike in the MAGA movement. Whereas they, of course, see it as a dangerous societal cancer comprised of nothing but racism, sexism, and “fascism.”

Not to complain about this too much, but — it’s tough. No one wants to feel alienated from their community, particularly one they used to identify with strongly. Yet this is the fate (at best, there can be much worse outcomes) that awaits anyone in Blue State America who dissents from the #Resistance mindset that took hold back in 2016.

Literally every person I’ve discussed this situation with, whether in-person or online, reports precisely the same thing: If they live in a Blue-coded community but depart from the party line in any serious way, they feel extremely isolated. Notably, this is true whether they’re Democrats who voted for Kamala or not. These days, the groupthink is so intense that to dissent even on select issues (e.g., gender ideology) is to generate ongoing challenges in everyday life.

This problem pales in comparison, though, to two related ones that I fear will only intensify unless Democrats find ways to break out of their #Resistance mindset.

First, the more that individual Democrats keep themselves locked in the same old cognitive box, the more they will seriously undermine their mental health. Between the denial of reasonable questions required, the division from others demanded, and the negative emotions constantly generated, staying there is like living in a small room with the walls closing in, making it harder and harder to breathe. I’ve seen several concerning cases of anxiety and paranoia myself and heard similar reports from others. Worse yet, many parents seem to be imposing this psycho-emotional prison on their children — who, of course, are being quite adversely affected.

A related but different problem is that the longer the Democratic Party and its surrogates keep denouncing everyone who doesn’t toe their line as racist, sexist, and fascist, the more they’ll continue to bleed credibility and support among the growing majority of the population that understands this is BS and isn’t having it any longer. And however you feel about the Dems, it’s simply true that America as a whole would be much better off if they’d start acting like a credible minority party, one focused on developing compelling critiques of the majority and meaningful alternatives to it. That can’t happen, though, as long as their core strategy is to keep denouncing Republicans (except, of course, neocons) and everyone who voted for Trump (including record numbers of POC) as fascist, racist, and sexist.

The longer that Democrats insist on staying securely locked within their #Resistance mindset, the deeper the hole they are digging for themselves, both individually and collectively. Being closed-minded is not a virtue. Refusing to consider ideas and information that challenge your priors only produces intellectual and political stagnation. And telling yourself over and over that half the country is horrific and despicable generates nothing but division, unhappiness, and fear.

It’s sad, unnecessary, concerning, and counterproductive. And it could all too easily lead to far more serious problems in the future.

This is a time of tremendous turbulence and change. Consequently, there’s a natural tendency to want to bunker down with your comrades, circle the wagons, and zealously police those boundaries. This is human nature and holds true for everyone, Blue and Red Staters alike. While I focus on the former because that’s who I live with and know well, the same problem can be just as bad on the other side. And the more that the country gets split into two camps that hate and fear each other blindly, the worse and more dangerous life becomes for us all.

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Final note: I wish I had solutions to offer. But I don’t. I do know, however, that: 1) arguing with people who virulently disagree with me is counterproductive, and 2) connecting with other like-minded people who hate groupthink is helpful. Personally, I enjoy The Unspeakeasy online community (for “free-thinking women”) and plan to explore the nonpartisan group Braver Angels. Similar suggestions are welcome; feel free to add them in the comments below.