There are few issues governments around the world can agree on. There are even fewer matters individuals can all unite over. The question of what is the most pressing issue in world politics today, is not one of those. Depending on a person’s or nation’s perspective the most pressing global concern might be the lack of sanitized water and malnutrition, the refugee crisis, or climate change. The interconnection of issues further complicates the debate as it morphs into a chicken or the egg argument. For instance, a global cohort may agree that poverty is a pressing concern, however, one country might believe lack of education is the root issue while another country believes lack of resources is the true pressing matter. One issue, however, shakes the very foundation of global cooperation. It has the potential to prevent any substantive attempts to unite internationally with the purpose of solving any one of the myriad of multifaceted global issues. What issue could possibly have the potential to divide the global community worse than football divides Pennsylvania residents? Nationalism.
Some people believe patriotism and nationalism are one in the same, so they might beg the question, “What the big deal is about some national pride?” Although originally these words might have been synonyms, in today’s climate there is a fine, but important, line between nationalism and patriotism. For the sake of this blog, I will follow the distinction set by Merriam- Webster (link below). Where patriotism is the love and devotion to one’s country, nationalism comes into play when a person begins promoting their country, culture, and interests above all other differing nations or identity groups. In current events, nationalism has reared its ugly head in Brexit negotiations, elections from France to Brazil to the United States, and the Syrian refugee crisis has produced multiple examples across Europe and Australia. Nationalism can depicted with the rise of white supremacy movements in the United States which have resulted in a concurrent rise of hate crimes and xenophobia. Empathy for people of other nationalities is, arguably, on the decline in unfortunate conjunction with the increase of an isolationist mindset and racism. If the current trend of nationalism continues and international cooperation deteriorates, how can we expect to combat current or future global issues like climate change, poverty, or refugee crises?
The above video is from one of my very favorite T. V. shows, Madame Secretary. One of the topics deliberated in the most recent season was, in fact, nationalism. I believe the above clip did an excellent job of outlining some concerns and important points surrounding the topic. I would love to hear what you think! If you require subtitles or would like to watch the episode in full, I encourage you to log into a Netflix account and look it up!
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ReplyDeleteSo, just to be clear, this doesn't count as a comment :-)
DeleteWow, nice post Xandra. I think that Nationalism was a great topic to touch on especially because of the recent events our nation has been forced to face (The Texas and Ohio shootings). The issue of nationalism is not only a pressing issue because of it's recent relevance, but because of the impact negative and positive nationalism has on a nation.The Ohio shooting hit close to home for me, because I am an Ohio resident only living 30 minutes from the Dayton area. The reality of an active shooter situation, never seems so real, until your community is forced to face the aftermath.
ReplyDeleteThe issue is to what extreme nationalism is taken, and whether it is good or bad nationalism. Good nationalism can be identified by simple pride in one's nation, the products it produces, and its affairs. However, bad nationalism can be defined as George Orwell put it best, “the lunatic modern habit of identifying oneself with large power units and seeing everything in terms of competitive prestige.”
I love the Madame Secretary reference! Nationalism is definitely playing a large role in world politics today, especially with the polarization of political parties in countries all around the world. In the US, both the Republican and Democratic parties seem to be getting more extreme in how they think they can best serve this country and, like you said, the same thing is happening in the UK with Brexit. In this time of instability people seem to hold on to what they know, and so by being more nationalistic they feel more safe. It's crazy how nationalism is really playing into so many issues in our world and nothing is really being done about it. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI agree that the idea of nationalism as one centered around a feeling or general attitude of superiority inherently creates problems with cooperation. I think that those who argue that nationalism could bolster productivity due to pride in one's own country and drive to better their respective society/nation are not entirely grasping the fine line between pride in one own's differences and believing that those differences indicate some sort of superiority. I think this is true from person to person, race to race, creed to creed, culture to culture, etc... meaning that celebrating and strengthening the unique aspects that make one's own group special doesn't have to come at the expense of another.
ReplyDelete(reposting b/c previous comment was accidentally posted anonymously whoops)I agree that the idea of nationalism as one centered around a feeling or general attitude of superiority inherently creates problems with cooperation. I think that those who argue that nationalism could bolster productivity due to pride in one's own country and drive to better their respective society/nation are not entirely grasping the fine line between pride in one own's differences and believing that those differences indicate some sort of superiority. I think this is true from person to person, race to race, creed to creed, culture to culture, etc... meaning that celebrating and strengthening the unique aspects that make one's own group special doesn't have to come at the expense of another.
ReplyDelete