4. Obsolete Nationalism

Ethnic nationalism once energized and ordered the world. It championed a state model that emphasized the sovereignty of the pure “nation”, and went on to inspire millions and to remould the world’s map. In the process, it precipitated countless disasters and gave rise to some of the most brutal totalitarian regimes of the past 100 years.

Our new authoritarians are confirmed and passionate ethnic nationalists. But the model of nationalism that they believe in — and the state model that it envisions, is obsolete.

It was always built on fantasies, but it did give the comfort of clear answers: Who “the people” are, what their origin was, and what their language, culture, and customs are. But as our societies became more mixed, with citizens often hyphenating their identity (Somali-Norwegian, Pakistani-British, Algerian-French), the very reality of the pure ethnic state has eroded. Modern states today are no longer defined by an imagined ethnic homogeneity.

But while ethnic nationalism as a system of belonging eroded, in many countries no alternative form of nationalism rose to replace it. It has long been acknowledged that a civic nationalism can arise, as an “open” nationalism defined by membership in a society, emphasizing a shared destiny rather than an imagined shared origin. But the weight of history has made many countries slow to attempt to build it as a serious alternative.

Worse, our clinging to an obsolete vision of nationalism is contributing to an identity crisis among minorities, who feel neither “of here” nor “of there”. There is a limit to how much someone can assimilate, even if they want to — but there’s the other question of whether it is humane or even desirable. Diversity is supposed to be a boon — but we are proceeding from an outdated concept of nationalism that sees it as a threat.

Identity — “who am I” — is among the deepest questions there is. In the absence of an effective system of belonging, individuals will not give up on identity — they’ll snap back to the most familiar identity they know, regardless of its usefulness or appropriateness. Hence the dizzying snap-back to outdated closed nationalisms in an age where our societies are more diverse than ever.

Tragically, the one country which had offered the greatest and most inspiring example of an open nationalism — the United States of America — ended up electing to office a team of ethnic nationalists. And this has been, in no small part, a result of a political failure.

Menu:
Introduction
#1 The Triumph of Globalization
#2 The Loss of Anchors
#3 Economic Transformation (Previous Section)
#4 Obsolete Nationalism (You are here)
#5 Political Failure
#6 Social Media Broke our Public Sphere
#7 The Unravelling of the Middle-East
Conclusion: The Trump Effect

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