“At a time of widespread polarization, it is vital to understand why liberals and conservatives mistrust one another. Darrell West draws on his personal history of growing up in a conservative community and teaching in the Ivy League to write a heartfelt account of America’s tribes and how we might bring them back together. Readers will gain tremendous understanding of contemporary divisions from the entertaining stories he tells.”—George Stephanopoulos, ABC News

“A riveting account, part memoir and part analysis, that explains how we descended into our current social and political quagmire and gives helpful suggestions for finding our way out.”—Bart Ehrman, James A Gray Distinguished Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“What divides our nation goes much deeper than politics. Brookings Institution scholar Darrell West looks at polarization from the high altitude of elite academia, and the ground-level perspective of his own life, which began in a conservative, deeply religious rural community. Along the way, he discovers surprising insights about life in conservative and liberal America.”—Karen Tumulty, The Washington Post

“Lots of Americans correctly worry about deepening polarization in our politics, but few seem to know what to do about it. Darrell West is an exception; he’s lived in both Red and Blue worlds, understands both, and sprinkles his book with very personal stories that enliven his narrative. West first thoughtfully analyzes how we got to such a disturbing divide and then makes some useful suggestions for dealing with it. It’s time to think carefully and map out a way forward. Darrell West has already begun that cartography in this perceptive, readable volume.”—Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics and professor of Politics at the University of Virginia

“A valued, insightful, thoughtful and thought-provoking contribution to our current and on-going political discussion with respect to the polarization of the electorate and its implications for the survival of our American style democracy.”—Midwest Book Review

Americans are caught in a partisan hyperconflict that divides politicians, communities, and even families. Darrell M. West, who grew up in a conservative, rural Ohio community, went on to teach in the liberal Ivy League and spent years working in the heart of the Washington, D.C., establishment. In this book he draws on that personal history to explore the political, economic, and cultural aspects of this polarization.

West’s conversations over the past 40 years with friends, colleagues, and family members form the heart of Divided Politics, Divided Nation, providing a unique perspective from which to understand the heated nature of U.S. politics—and how we reached our current boiling point. Societal tensions have metastasized into a dangerous tribalism that seriously threatens American democracy. This polarization has become so intense that many people no longer trust anyone who espouses a different view. Politicians from the president to state and local officeholders have stoked and often inflamed the situation. Few are doing anything to stem the resulting inferno that has swept through American politics, society, and culture.

Unless Americans can overcome these divisions it will be impossible, West argues, to work together and maintain a functioning democracy. In Divided Politics, Divided Nation, he explains how we might bridge our divisions: by enacting political and economic reforms, improving news coverage, and persuading people to listen to each other’s viewpoints. These are the only ways to calm our anger, forge a new path forward, and deal with twentyfirst-century challenges.