Divided States of America: Why we need an Interdependence Day to restore national unity

Our reverence for July 4 reflects America’s core value of independence – of freedom from dependence on others.

Its import is captured in other founding beliefs and practices such as puritanism and the rugged individualism of our Western-settler ancestors. It's also evident in our predilection toward nationalism, isolationism and conservatism’s tenet of small government: don’t tread on me.

However, independence is functional only in societies with sufficient respect for cooperative interdependence – where citizens have shared aspirations and a strong sense that they all sink or swim together. This encourages them to come together to agree on the most basic rules, norms, taboos and laws that govern their lives.

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Without it, an unchecked thirst for independence and competition leads to a selfish free-for-all, a Hobbesian existence that is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”

Our focus on “me” needs to be buffered by a commitment to “we.”

Today, America is sorely lacking unity. We have plenty of “me” time, and ample “us versus them” – being polarized politically at historically high levels – which has left our sense of social cohesion so withered that The Economist Intelligence Unit has downgraded us to a “flawed” democracy, and our ranking on the 2021 Global Peace Index has fallen to 122nd out of 163 nations.

So, I am calling for a new national holiday – American Interdependence Day – a celebration of the “us” in the U.S. and acknowledgement of the fact that our individual fates are inextricably linked.

Peaceful societies celebrate unity

Cultural anthropologists have long documented the power of a society’s rituals, symbols and ceremonies for both shaping and reflecting its character. Decades of research on the world’s most peaceful societies has pointed to the central importance of celebrations of unity.

In fact, a recent study we published in Nature found that of all the conditions that distinguish more and less peaceful societies, the presence and commemoration of unifying values, norms and rituals is the most critical.

What might such a holiday entail? Research suggests the following.

►A national reset: Given the extraordinary set of forces pitting Americans against one another today, a significant reset is warranted. That is, a national reckoning when we are asked to stop, reflect and remember our mutual goals and aspirations as well as our own contributions to the more divisive patterns we seek to change.

Resets have been found in formerly divided societies like Costa Rica in the 1940s and Mauritius in the 1990s to help establish the conditions for more unified futures.

►An Interdependence Day march: Research also finds that when people are stuck in destructive, conflictual patterns that have become embodied in their neurological structures, physical movement can help to free them up and reset their experiences and relationships.

When adversaries move together – side-by-side and ideally outside – it can connect and synchronize them in ways that promote more empathy, rapport and flexibility. A National Unity March in Washington D.C. and in towns across America could invite red, blue and purple Americans to come together in good faith and solidarity to walk in support of reviving our national spirit.

'Bridge builders' help promote dialogue

►Recognition of community immune systems: A vital lesson gleaned from international peacebuilding is that many of the most effective initiatives helping communities transition out of intergroup strife come from within them.

More than 7,000 bridge-building groups are focused on promoting community dialogues across our divides. Some work in sectors like journalism, education, social media and government to bring opposing parties together in dialogue. They represent the immune systems of our communities – agents actively fighting against the pathologies of contempt and vilification and working to expand the moderate middle.

►A celebration of tolerance: Research on the most tolerant societies around the globe has found that nations are more likely to evolve in peaceful directions when they have a clear sense of what it entails.

Countries like Denmark and New Zealand have developed attitudes, identities, language and institutions necessary to sustain unity.

These conditions are also found today in some of the most politically tolerant counties in the U.S., such as North County N.Y., Randolph County, N.C., and Ochiltree, Texas. These are places where people live, work and play with others holding differing political views; where they come to know, marry and depend on one another, despite their differences. Americans need to see how this is possible.

A national holiday will not heal our more selfish instincts or deeper divisions, but it could offer a symbol and a catalyst to set us off down a better path together.

Peter T. Coleman is a professor of psychology at Columbia University, director of the Morton Deutsch International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution, and author of "The Way Out: How to Overcome Toxic Polarization."