National unity during crisis? Look to lessons from WWII.
Health care workers clashing with anti-lockdown protesters. Members of Congress arguing over safety measures. And debates around public health that map out over racial, socioeconomic, and ideological lines.
In today's age of hyperpartisanship, it聽seems not even a worldwide pandemic can bring Americans together. If anything, the crisis appears to be聽intensifying existing divides.
But this isn鈥檛 the first time the U.S. has faced a global emergency while wrestling with deep internal divisions. We often remember the World War II era as a period of fervent patriotism and national unity, but the country back then was also confronting serious social and political rifts around race, the economy, and America鈥檚 role in the world.
Why We Wrote This
We may remember World War II as a period of patriotism and solidarity. But the years leading up to the war were marked by deep social and political rifts that may sound familiar today. As we again face the threat of a deadly 鈥� if faceless 鈥� enemy, what can we learn from the last time Americans banded together to confront a crisis? Here鈥檚 the fourth installment of 鈥�Precedented,鈥� a video series about how history can help us understand today鈥檚 issues.
There are some important differences: World War II supplied clear enemies to rally against in Nazi Germany and Japan, while the coronavirus is 鈥渇aceless and invisible,鈥� says American University historian Allan Lichtman. We are also more divided along partisan lines today, and trust less in government and institutions than we did under President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Still, 鈥渨e didn鈥檛 go into World War II a united nation,鈥� Professor Lichtman says. 鈥淭he recognition, in a bipartisan way, of a dangerous common enemy brought us together.鈥�
In this episode, we explore the fissures that existed leading up to the war years, how they compare with what we鈥檙e dealing with now, and what we can learn about our nation鈥檚 ability to come together during a crisis.