In a world that feels increasingly divided, the concept of identity has become more complex than ever. The need to define yourself as part of a social group has never felt more urgent, and yet, as we face this universal identity crisis, few people seem to give it much thought.
To understand this, let’s start with the basics. Young people are constantly shaped by what surrounds them, whether it’s their taste in music, fashion, or hobbies, often in hopes of pleasing others. Over time, that pressure leads them to reshape their personality, their beliefs, and ultimately themselves. And since those teens grow up to become the adults responsible for the future of our planet, they carry that craving for acceptance with them into adulthood. This isn’t new. Since the earliest days of humanity, belonging has been tied to survival. Being cast out of your tribal community could mean death. Fitting in wasn’t just social; it was essential.
Yet these subtle shifts in character and worldview can affect more than personality. They can erode even the most basic human morals. What begins as people dividing over sports teams evolves into division over political parties, and eventually into obsession, making people deeply susceptible to propaganda. And while the people in charge resolve their manufactured conflicts through negotiation, ordinary people develop real hate, proclaiming themselves better than their adversary, full of pride at being included in their “clan.”
Speaking of political parties, many have recently centered their concerns on immigration, which raises a critical question: where do immigrants belong? In their home country? In the country where they legally built a life? And who gets to decide? If we think about it honestly, we are all immigrants on Earth’s free land. Yet we see children of immigrants struggling to label themselves, never feeling like they belong anywhere, while refugees seeking shelter often end up thriving where they land. So what is the point of seeing others as aliens or treating diversity as a danger? Is that really where we are headed as a society?
Ironically, many of the labels that divide us are based on nationality, appearance, and religion, things largely acquired by luck. The insecure use them to justify their supposedly “high ranks” while pushing down anyone who differs from them. As philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer put it, “A man with nothing to be proud of often resorts to taking pride in his ethnicity, nationality, or caste.” Humanity has always longed for power and tried to affirm it by any means. Gradually, this creates racism, which always ends in wars and violence. And we cannot forget the immense destruction colonization caused to the identity of people around the world. The oppressors understood that identity meant power, identity meant unity, identity meant bravery, because the colonized knew exactly what they were fighting for.
So let us take stock. We live in a world where the powerful divide people to weaken them, erase their identity to control where they belong, because unity is what they fear most.
