Identity is defined as \u201cthe distinguishing character or personality of an individual\u201d(1) I read it a couple of times so that I could let it sink in. I then tried to find a single, only one, distinguishing character that makes me \u2018me\u201d! I could not. I am so many things, a beautiful and complex combination of many imperfect things. I could not find \u201cthe (one) distinguishing character.\u201d I have been asked many times, \u201cHow do you Identify\u2019? I am never quite sure how to answer that. Do I respond with my pronoun? Do I share my sexual orientation? Do I share my racial composition? Do I share my marital status? Do I share my Religious Beliefs? Do I share my Political Party? Do I share them all? If so, it would go a little something like this- I identify as an African- American Married, Christian, Sis-Gender, Liberal Mother that uses She\/Her Pronouns (and for added entertainment) \u2026my favorite color is yellow, I\u2019m a Taurus, I am a Non-Smoker, I am a Dog Mom, and I am a Tacoholic. The challenge is deciding what to include, there are so many things that make me \u201cme \u201cand they are not all positive. In case you did not notice that I conveniently left those out. I believe we all want to be seen as interesting, so we naturally lean towards words that support this perception. Beyond how we self-identify, there are affiliations both personal and professional that connect us to others. These affiliations also impact how others identify us. Economics, race, and class are significant factors when these affiliations are political.
\nFukuyama addresses the behavior and motivation associated with Identity Politics. \u201cBefore we can understand contemporary identity politics, we need to step back and develop a deeper and richer understanding of human motivation and behavior.\u201d(2) It is the motivation, the reason we choose certain affiliations that is worth exploring. He continues, \u201cContemporary identity politics is driven by the quest for equal recognition by groups that have been marginalized by their societies.\u201d(3) Identity politics while it unifies in one sense it also is the great separator in today\u2019s society. Politics is the great divider. When the motivation is money, power and position, there is always a danger of separation based on race and class.
\nI was recently watching a movie and the character was complaining about society\u2019s need to reward everyone. His claim was that not everyone deserves everything. That there are some things that are reserved for people that earn it or deserve it. He believed that not everyone is equal so they should not be treated the same way or rewarded the same. It was also his belief that that this has been perpetuated by youth sport leagues and elementary schools that support rewarding effort alone and not high achievement. And he is not alone in this belief. I have watched parents be very vocal about the “everyone gets a trophy\u201d sports leagues. It can get ugly when you believe that you deserve something and some else is equally rewarded or rewarded over you. Fukuyama writes, \u201cRecognition of everyone\u2019s equal worth means a failure to recognize the worth of people who are actually superior in some sense.\u201d(4) For those that seek superiority and recognition, affiliation with organizations (political and personal) will be based on supporting this mindset. \u201cWhile a certain group of humans always want to be seen as superior, a powerful feeling of resentment arises when one is disrespected.\u201d(5) This idea of being superior means that a person or people will be seen as inferior. You cannot have superiority with without inferiority. So where does that leave those that do not have power, privilege, and position?
\nI thought that it was interesting that Fukuyama included a section of the Declaration of Independence. The question of who is included in \u201call men\u201d has been debated and has often been an issue for me. Honestly, I always felt that it excluded women, people of color and most assuredly women of color. What I had not realized is that it also excluded white men that were not landowners. Fukuyama writes, \u201cIn democratic societies we assert`, with the American Declaration of Independence, that \u201call men are created equal.\u201d Yet historically, we have disagreed on who qualifies as \u201call men.\u201d(6) At the time of the declaration was signed, this circle did not include white men without property, black slaves, indigenous Americans, or women.\u201d Race and class continue to be dividing factors which have roots at the very origin of the United States governing documents. This leaves me longing for a world where we are all seen as equal. I know that sounds na\u00efve but what would it look like if we all saw each other as children of God, if we saw our neighbors the way God sees them. What if, when asked how we identify ourselves, we all responded one way. I identify as a Child of God! How different would our world be?<\/p>\n
1.https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/identity, accessed 10\/7\/23
\n2.Francis Fukuyama, Identity: The Demand For Dignity And The Politics Of Resentment (New York, N.Y: Picador, 2019), 11.
\n3.Ibid., 22.
\n4.Ibid., 23.
\n5.Ibid., 21.
\n6.Ibid., 23.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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