“It liberates the vandal to travel - you never saw a bigoted, opinionated, stubborn, narrow-minded, self-conceited, almighty mean man in your life but he had stuck in one place since he was born and thought God made the world and dyspepsia and bile for his especial comfort and satisfaction.” – Mark Twain, The American Abroad speech, 1868
I often find that we treat “Pluralism” like a participation trophy for different cultures. I see us thinking it is just about “tolerating” people who aren’t like us, gritting our teeth and putting up with different rituals until we can retreat to the self-imposed safety of our own “correct” campsite.
But I believe tolerance is lazy. Tolerance is merely avoidance … the absence of conflict; to me, Pluralism is the active engagement with diversity to create a better whole … a better family, a better team, a better city, a better state, a better nation, a better world.
I recognize that no single person, religion, or ideology has a monopoly on the truth. And, as I have noted innumerable times, I fear true believers in anything. True believers too often subscribe to an extreme ethos: “If you don’t believe as we believe, we can kill you and justify the murder.”
Common categories of groups that frequently utilize extreme dynamics include:
Extremist or Radical Ideological and More Than A Few Religious Movements: Such groups often construct their entire narrative around a struggle between “us” (the enlightened or righteous) and “them” (the embodiment of evil). Demonizing the opposition, whether secular or of a differing faith, serves to validate their own radical stance as necessary and morally superior.
Insular Cults and High-Control Internal Silos: To maintain tight internal cohesion, these groups often define themselves by their contrast to the “corrupt” or “lost” outside world. By casting outsiders as dangerous or inherently flawed, they discourage members from leaving and reinforce a sense of exclusive belonging. (This includes internal groups that establish a “shadow chain-of-command” within the organization and a few that demonize their own supervisors and senior decision-makers to create “Us versus Them” dynamics to control the narrative.)
Nationalistic or Supremacist Organizations: Such groups define worth based on inherent identity, such as nationality, ethnicity, or race. They often maintain a sense of superiority by creating myths or narratives that depict those outside their group as a threat to their culture, safety, or prosperity.
Polarized Political Factions: In highly polarized environments, factions may rely on dehumanizing rhetoric to simplify complex issues. By painting the opposition as malicious rather than merely having a different viewpoint, these groups solidify their own base and create a sense of urgency that demands loyalty.
Reactionary “Us-vs-Them” Movements: When a demographic group feels its status is threatened or in decline, it may form a reactionary identity based on blaming another group for their perceived loss of influence or stability.
These behaviors typically stem from the social identity theory, where individuals derive self-esteem from their group membership. When the group’s status feels threatened, or when its internal bonds need strengthening, attacking an external target becomes a functional, albeit destructive, tool for consolidation. Uniting against a real or imagined common enemy is powerful, especially among emotionally vulnerable humans.
Such entrenchments should be instructional for all of us.
As I have learned while developing The Guidant Path, human experience is like light hitting a prism: it refracts into a thousand different colors. I know my specific “hue” isn’t the whole light. To see the full spectrum of what it means to be human, I have to value the other colors, even the ones that seem “clashing” at first glance.
Walking With The Pluralist Mindset
The End of Tribalism: I believe Pluralism requires the adult maturity to realize that my way is a way, not the only way. It demands that we find a “shared center” while maintaining our unique differences. It is an abysmally failed belief system that must diminish others to validate its own worth.
Engagement, Not Isolation: We don’t practice pluralism by ignoring people; we practice it by interacting with them, challenging their logic and choices, and allowing ourselves to be challenged in return.
The Responsibility of Inquiry: A pluralist mindset demands the courage to ask questions, not to trap the “other,” but to understand the logic behind their position. It is the practice of replacing assumptions with actual data points.
The Discipline of Perspective-Taking: Purposeful adulting requires the ability to hold two conflicting viewpoints in mind simultaneously without feeling personally threatened. This capacity prevents the reactive instinct to demonize and allows for more effective problem-solving.
Active Deflection of Noise: Because the purposeful adult recognizes that “noise” is an attempt to deflect from reality, they maintain their focus on the whole of humanity rather than getting drawn into the emotional bait of tribal superiority.
I know we don’t need to be the same to belong together. I see Pluralism as the only sustainable path for a global species; anything else is just a slow-motion extinction.
Nice article Steve.