Underneath all of today’s culture wars are three foundational assumptions that are under attack:
- Light skin is superior to dark skin
- Christianity is superior to other faiths
- Male is superior to female
We inherited a society with these assumptions built in. It is up to all of us to determine what to do about that.
Democracy has always threatened these and other superiority assumptions by declaring that all people are equal, regardless of human labels and power structures.
The battle for equality is not new. The actions, suffering and sacrifices of many over generations and millennia have created progress toward equality. Now, it is is our turn.
What seems different today, is that these assumptions are more visible to the privileged, core definitions are being challenged, and the backlash for even talking about them is more fierce, fueled by national leaders and lots of people with assault rifles. The stakes, it seems, for making progress, are higher than they have been for a few decades, at least for the formerly oblivious.
It is one thing to learn about civil rights movements of the past, and congratulate ourselves for the great progress our heroes have made. It is quite another to see a Black man murdered under the knee of white police officer. The murder of George Floyd was stunning, forcing us to see what we have failed to hear about racial violence today. The stunning realizations are unrelenting.
It is one thing to read about incidents and patterns of racial injustice. It is another thing entirely to expose the historical truths, and demand accountability and restitution in a nation content with a whitewashed history.
It is one thing to celebrate the achievements of people of color who succeeded against all odds. It is quite another to declare that Black Lives Matter, because it requires us to face the truth that in our society, many of them really don’t.
It is one thing to learn about cultural diversity and inclusion at work, celebrating the differences that everyone brings. It is another to welcome poor immigrants to become part of the American story.
It is one thing to learn about religions of the world. It is another thing entirely to support leaders who place their hands on the Qur’an to take their oaths of office.
It is one thing to argue that women are equal to men. It is quite another to stand with people who are non-binary, transgender, and who express their identities in ways that are not familiar. A nuanced and fluid understanding of gender threatens its very definition.
Though race, religion and gender assumptions drive many social and institutional dynamics, none of them are actually real. They are constructs invented by humans to keep powerful people in power.
The people with the most power have a lot to lose if these assumptions are changed. They are working very hard to drive wedges between us to ensure the status remains quo, even if the cost is an end to democracy.
We are at a crossroads. The undercurrents of our history have become waves of hatred. The caged beast of racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia and Christian colonialism has been released, free to roam through every institution and school board to ensure that the superiority assumptions we inherited endure, even if democracy is extinguished in the process.
We must not be intimidated. We must do our part as individuals and collectively to ensure that the promise of democracy we inherited is not crushed by the superiority assumptions that also persist.
To understand how similar superiority/inferiority dynamics play out at work, check out my book, Management Culture at mgmtculture.com.