Partism värre än rasism

En intressant, aktuell debatt i USA handlar om ”partism” är värre än ”rasism”. I ett inlägg har Harvardprofessorn Cass Sunstein utvecklat sitt argument:

If you are a Democrat, would you marry a Republican? Would you be upset if your sister did?

Researchers have long asked such questions about race, and have found that along important dimensions, racial prejudice is decreasing. At the same time, party prejudice in the U.S. has jumped, infecting not only politics but also decisions about dating, marriage and hiring. By some measures, ”partyism” now exceeds racial prejudice — which helps explain the intensity of some midterm election campaigns.

Han  citerar en forskningsrapport:

Are people less willing to trust people of a different race or party affiliation? The researchers found that race didn’t matter — but party did. People are significantly more trusting of others who share their party affiliation.

What accounts for the explosive growth of political prejudice? Modern campaigns deserve some of the blame. Iyengar and his colleagues show that when people are exposed to messages that attack members of the opposing party, their biases increase. But the destructive power of partyism is extending well beyond politics into people’s behavior in daily life.

Sunstein