Opinion: The problem with individualism in American culture

Americans gravitated toward individualism as people spread out in a new land that seemed wide-open with many opportunities. Many had to make individual decisions to come to America in the first place. Of course, this does not apply to slaves brought here by force, but in general the settlers saw numerous opportunities for individual enrichment.

The arriving farmers looked at land that was ready for farming. The indigenous hunting people already here saw the land differently as full of animals waiting to be hunted. The arriving farmers soon outnumbered the hunters. Succeeding generations leading up to and beyond the Industrial Revolution rewarded individuals showing initiative. These circumstances led American culture to elevate the value of individualism. American parents still encourage their children with words like “you can be what you want to be, even President of the United States.”

However, the problem with individualism in American culture is that it blinds people to circumstantial influences, especially when they have experienced more favorable circumstances than others.  As a generalization, conservatives tend to favor individualism and progressives tend to see additional broader circumstantial influences. The result is two sub-cultures leaning in different directions. Historically, President Roosevelt in the 1930s questioned the individualistic forces of capitalism that brought great disparities of wealth and the Great Depression. His opponents called him and his party “socialistic,” seeing America as becoming like European countries. Democrats saw it as America maturing beyond its extreme individualism. The democratic policies of Social Security and later Medicare and Medicaid have come to be very helpful and taken-for-granted. Post-World War II policies of the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations favoring aid to the poor and less privileged were also largely accepted.

Now we face a new era of clashing cultures with similarities to past competing viewpoints. The individualism in American culture has reasserted itself in gun culture. Examples of American individualism are the sayings, “It takes a good man with a gun to stop a bad man with a gun,” or “guns don’t kill people, it is people who kill people.” To think only in terms of individuals leads to half-truths that can be dangerous when they blind people to making laws that protect people.  

One of the results of the ideology of individualism is to blame those who are having a hard time in their lives. Followers of individualism say things like, “If they only tried or worked harder, they would not be having so much trouble.” Again, this ignores other important factors beyond one’s control. Individualism can also encourage those who are comfortable in life to think they were able to achieve their comfort in life on their own, which is rarely true.  

It would be a great help to the nation for people to understand both the power and blindness of individualism in American culture. We should seek to understand the influence on us of our physical and social circumstances. A combination of events and circumstances has brought Americans to the cusp of realizing many realities in American life. Some derisively call this realization as being “Woke,” but coming to new understandings should not be derided. It is important growth in both knowledge and wisdom. It is also part of being a good citizen of America. Of course, we will always be a society where people have differing and competing opinions. Being a democracy means we agree to debate our views and participate in voting for people and policies that we support. We have two competing parties that lean in different directions. One is focused on individualism, which obviously has the value of encouraging individual initiative and innovation. The other considers broader influences in society that can either benefit or harm people. The right to own guns brings to light the danger of seeing only individuals instead of circumstances of others in life.

I love the individual freedom to make decisions that I have had and would not want to give up that freedom. However, I must acknowledge that I inherited advantages others have not had. Many people seem unconscious of the advantages they have received in life compared to others.

Our democracy is at stake because our nation is in a world where autocrats have arisen in a number of nations, including in America. Many people are drawn to such people as models of the strong individual they would like to be and who will make circumstances better for them. Instead, autocrats seek mainly to increase their own power.

Rev. Robert L. Montgomery, who holds a Ph.D. in social scientific studies of religion, lives in Black Mountain.