In U.S politics, there have always been two parties, these parties date back to nearly the formation of the United States of America. Even though they have been through some major changes, the two party system still remains. Now,  the two party system has worked for hundreds of years, but I think it has crossed the line. Tribalism is defined as the behaviour and attitudes that stem from strong loyalty to one's own tribe or social group, and I believe that the two-party system in the U.S has devolved into just that.

Tribalism in the U.S has driven people together, but not in a good way. People are now grouping together in person and on social media groups only with people who share the same ideals as they do. This is leading to a more drastic gap between ideals and more vicious clashes between ideals because people are no longer being exposed to other ideas. This is the issue of ideological diversity and one of the causes(or effects) of tribalism.

Today, democrats and republicans are constantly attacking each other. Many people seem to choose sides of an argument not due to them agreeing with the idea they are subscribing to but because they do not like the opposing idea. This was captured in a study done by pew research where they asked people why they consider themselves as democratic or republican. A whopping 63% of democrats and 71% or republicans cited one of the reasons they identify with their respective party is due to disagreeing with the other parties ideas. That’s insane! People should not be forced to choose a side because the other option is worse (Pew Research).

This all culminated in the 2016 election. It was definitely one of the most controversial election to date, whether you are talking about the alleged russian meddling or just the candidates themselves. Many voters chose sides not because of who they agreed with or shared their beliefs, but instead out of spite for the other side.

I believe if society is to advance further and reach a more fair environment where the government really starts to reflect the views of the people we need to drop our archaic tribalism and instead focus on what we think is correct, not based on what tribe the candidates are from. I believe one of the ways that this can be done is dropping the two party system, and if not that. Then at least diversifying it to a three or four party system. This would remove some of the incentive to choose based on political party and instead choose based on your own morality.

Works Cited

Fingerhut, Hannah. "Many Partisans Choose Their Political Party Based On Dislike Of Opposing One". Pew Research Center, 2019.