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Throughout history, cultural shifts have signaled a collective hunger…not just for new policies or new leaders, but for a deeper sense of belonging.
In recent years, two seemingly opposite forces, the MAGA movement and the Resist/Occupy movements, have illustrated this same deeper impulse. While their ideologies differ, both are attempts to build community in a society that has prized individualism over connection for decades.
For half a century, Western culture has leaned into hyper-individualism:
>> Success measured by personal achievement rather than collective thriving.
>> Communities replaced by corporations.
>> Social bonds thinned by mobility, technology, and consumerism.
We were told to be self-made and self-sufficient. But the cost has been devastating. Loneliness has reached epidemic levels, and suicide rates continue to climb. Depression and addiction spread in the cracks where community used to live. A culture that fragments people into isolated units cannot meet the basic human need for belonging.
When seen through the lens of belonging, the MAGA movement and the Resist/Occupy movements are not just political expressions but human ones. Both grew from deep disillusionment with institutions that promised prosperity and fairness but delivered betrayal.
>> MAGA built community through rallies, slogans, and a promise of returning to greatness.
>> Resist/Occupy built solidarity through marches, protests, and the language of resistance against corporate and political elites.
Though ideologically opposed, both created tribes of belonging with rituals, symbols, and narratives of good and evil. And both, unfortunately, too often framed outsiders as enemies.
This tribal instinct, while understandable, fuels division.
And division benefits those at the top.
The more fragmented we are, the easier it is for elites to maintain control.
If we recognize these movements not as threats but as signals, we see a shared truth: people are desperate for connection, meaning, and solidarity. The task is not to suppress this hunger but to redirect it toward unity rather than fear.
Here’s how we can begin:
>> Create local, face-to-face community spaces. Community gardens, repair cafés, cross-cultural potlucks, and neighborhood projects dissolve stereotypes faster than online debate ever could.
>> Tell new stories. Elevate stories of solidarity and care across race, class, and politics—not just narratives of grievance.
>> Reconnect generations. Build bridges between elders and youth through mentorship, storytelling, and shared skills.
>> Reclaim ritual. Singing, art, mourning ceremonies, and seasonal festivals give people meaning without needing an enemy.
>> Use digital tools to bridge, not divide. Online platforms can support local networks and mutual aid rather than outrage.
The real lesson of MAGA and Resist/Occupy is not that we are doomed to fight each other, but that we all share the same human hunger for belonging.
When we see that, empathy replaces suspicion. Curiosity replaces fear.
The West does not have to remain a culture of isolated individuals or warring tribes. It can become a culture of neighbors, collaborators, and co-creators. That shift is not naïve, it’s necessary for survival.
The next wave of cultural change could be not another cycle of backlash and division, but a rebirth of community: rooted in connection, grounded in care, and immune to the manipulations of elites who thrive on keeping us apart.
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