Why Political Segregation is as Bad, or Worse, Than Racial Segregation in America

Impact

In America the people have become self-segregated be it racially or politically. People allow themselves to be grouped together, and in this I see a bad thing. We as Americans need to return to the pride that we had for so many years in this country. But, allowing ourselves to be labeled Pro- this or Anti- that is a very dangerous thing. By allowing this to happen we deepen the divide between the citizens that make this country as great as it is. We allow ourselves to be pigeoned holed and it doesn't even end in the political world. 

We also racially self segregate, by calling ourselves African Americans or Italian Americans. Now don't get me wrong, pride in your heritage is a wonderful thing. But I rather am an American first. By allowing self segregation we continue the issues of the past, we have the all white communities and all black communities and so forth and they tend not to mix. As Americans, though, we should help our neighbor and we should support our community. We should not allow the color of one's skin, or faith in one's god, or belief in ones political party separates us from being Americans. But the sad thing is we do this to ourselves.

We also allow ourselves to self-segregate over political views, and this is where the hate and vileness seems to really show. It seems some people can't handle others who have a different opinion.  Examples I have seen first hand would be, "I am not an Obama supporter and I have been told it has nothing to do with his policies it's just can't handle a black man as president." Now, this couldn't be further from the truth. I grew up a few blocks from our local hospital, every Sunday a group of churchgoers would hold up anti abortion signs and protest in front of the center. This is a case where I saw how both sides acted in a self-segregating way and neither is right to behave as they did. I witnessed people throwing full soda cans at the protesters as well as the protesters calling a woman a baby killer. Now, neither of these actions helps bring groups of differing opinions together. It just further segregates each other. We, as Americans, have the right to agree and disagree with each other. We also have the ability to be civil and communicate our opinion and listen to someone else's opinion, even if it's different than ours. This can help to   teach about the other person, and the way they he or she sees the world; and, in turn, help him or her to understand you.

We, as Americans, need to stop labeling ourselves and allowing ourselves to be labeled; and start to learn about one another. We may not always agree. We may not like the other person's opinion. But no one's perfect and to judge a person or a group based on a view one simply disagrees with doesn’t make one any better than the person's opinion one is showing a lack of respect to. So, next time you disagree with someone don't hold it against him or he, try to learn from he or she, and find out why your view on that topic is so different.