Why We're Polarized

Learn why we participate in American politics, how it become a toxic system, and what it implies for our future from political analyst, journalist, and Vox cofounder Ezra Klein.

Following Election Day 2016, the soon-to-be president's allies and detractors celebrated his win as a historically rare occurrence. The majority of Americans concurred that there had never been an elected president quite like Donald Trump. However, political writer Ezra Klein argues that there was no surprise in the 2016 election. By garnering a roughly same number of voter demographics as prior Republican candidates, Trump's electoral triumph really followed the exact same pattern as previous elections.

In the last fifty years, racial, religious, regional, ideological, and cultural identities have blended with our partisan identities in the United States. These combined identities now carry such weight that they are shattering many political rules and severing the connections that bind this nation.

In this ground-breaking work, Klein explains how and why identity became a source of political conflict in American politics during the 20th century, as well as the consequences for our collective and individual worldviews. Additionally, he explores the vicious cycles that propel our political system toward disintegration between our divisive political institutions and identities.

Klein provides a coherent framework for comprehending everything from Trump's ascent to the Democratic Party's leftward movement to the politicization of popular culture. It is neither a polemic nor a lament. A groundbreaking book that will alter your perspective on politics and possibly even yourself.