We all know that political polarization exists in America. However, political polarization exists across the globe. Each country has a different system of government which leads to groups coming together with forming opinions about their government.

A lot of the polarization that is happening across the globe is because of polarizing leaders. For example in Turkey, the country is divided on certain issues. There is no unity between the government and the citizens. Many of the citizens have been questioning elections and how legit they are.

When we think about polarization we tend to focus on American polarization. However, this is different from today because intense political polarization is happening in many countries. We tend to overlook other democracies and governments, however, this is an occurring problem. The intensifying polarization in these countries can lead to disagreement between countries. If this happens, then bigger issues like potential wars can happen.

As we know, Ukraine and Russia are at war right now due to political polarization. The pro-russian separatist became an active group in 2014 during the Russian Revolution. They gained popularity when they pushed for “liberation”. This would then turn into a bigger issue because it would lead to a full invasion on Ukraine by Russia.

Global polarization can be hard to recognize because Americans are not used to other democracies or other forms of government. However, we can not fail to recognize the impacts that it has on our society. Division amongst citizens can lead to a failing democracy and can lead to things like war.

Furthermore, there are other important issues that global polarization affects. The Covid-19 issue affected each country. Since this was a new disease, no country was prepared to handle this issue. This became a divided topic because each country had to come up with their own plan that was effective. The whole world was in disarray and this issue also became a prominent factor in politics. In America, this became the foundation of the 2020 election campaign. Rather than this being a health care issue, it became more about politics.

Rather than uniting on the issue and trying to get a better understanding on how to solve it, the world became more divided. Global polarization will continue to occur. However, with advocacy for change and less emphasis on on political parties, polarization could potentially decrease.

Image sources: The Washington Post and Carnegie Envelope