American nationalism
In 1754, the Albany Plan proposed a union between the Thirteen Colonies. Residents of these colonies identified with Britain until the mid-18th century when the first sense of being American emerged. The British Parliament passed acts that taxed the colonies without their representation. Americans agreed only their own colonial legislatures could pass internal taxes. London punished Boston for the Boston Tea Party in response to colonial resistance. The Thirteen Colonies united and formed the Continental Congress which lasted from 1774 to 1789. Fighting broke out in 1775 and sentiment swung to independence in early 1776. Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense became a runaway best seller that year. It was read aloud in taverns and coffee houses across the colonies. Congress unanimously issued a Declaration of Independence announcing a new nation of independent states had formed. This new nation was called the United States of America. American Patriots won the American Revolutionary War and received generous peace terms from Britain in 1783. About 80% of Loyalists who remained became full American citizens after the war. Frequent parades along with new rituals and ceremonies provided popular occasions for expressing a spirit of American nationalism.
White Southerners increasingly felt alienated as aggressive anti-slavery Northerners tried to end their ability to enslave people. They questioned whether their loyalty to the nation trumped their commitment to their state and way of life since it was so intimately bound up with slavery. A sense of Southern nationalism started to emerge by 1860 when the election of Lincoln signaled most slave states in the South to secede. The Confederate government insisted this nationalism was real and imposed increasing burdens on the population in the name of independence. The fierce combat record of the Confederates demonstrated their commitment to death for independence. The government and army refused to compromise and were militarily overwhelmed in 1865. By the 1890s, the white South felt vindicated through its belief in the newly constructed memory of the Lost Cause of the Confederacy. The North came to accept or at least tolerate racial segregation and disfranchisement of black voters in the South. The ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment settled the fundamental question of national identity such as criteria for becoming a citizen of the United States. Everyone born in the territorial boundaries of the United States or those areas subject to its jurisdiction became an American citizen regardless of ethnicity or social status.
In the early 20th century, one of the highest-profile advocates for American nationalism was Theodore Roosevelt. He insisted that one had to be 100% American not a hyphenated American who juggled multiple loyalties. Millions of immigrants came from Europe Canada Mexico and Cuba during periods of fast-growing industrial economy. Becoming a full citizen required completion of paperwork over five years. New Asian arrivals were not welcome however. The U.S. imposed restrictions on most Chinese immigrants in the 1880s and informal restrictions on most Japanese in 1907. By 1924 it was difficult for any Asian to enter the United States though children born in the United States to Asian parents remained full citizens. The Immigration Act of 1924 regulated immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe. Restrictions were ended on the Chinese in the 1940s and on other Asians in 1965. Public school education became compulsory in many jurisdictions with parochial schools being restricted or outlawed. The school day typically began with the Pledge of Allegiance. Citizenship was also extended to Native Americans both on- and off-reservation for the first time.
Following World War II and beginning with the Cold War, the United States emerged as a world superpower. It abandoned its traditional policy of isolationism in favor of interventionism. Nationalism took on a new form in the U.S. as Americans began to view their country as a world police. The ultimate goal was eradicating communism from the world. This nationalist fervor was fueled by US involvement in the Korean War Vietnam War Bay of Pigs Invasion and many other conflicts. After the 1941 Attack on Pearl Harbor many Americans enlisted in the military. During the war much of American life centered on contributing to the war effort mainly through volunteer efforts entry into labor force rationing price controls and income saving. Citizens willingly accepted these sacrifices out of a sense of nationalism feeling they were for the greater good. Even members of anti-war groups like pacifist churches and conscientious objectors abandoned their pacifism for the sake of the war. They felt that World War II was a just war.
The September 11 attacks of 2001 led to a wave of nationalist expression in the United States. The start of the war on terror was accompanied by a rise in military enlistment that included not only lower-income Americans but also middle-class and upper-class citizens. This nationalism continued long into the War in Afghanistan and Iraq War. President Donald Trump was described as a nationalist and he embraced the term himself. Several officials within his administration were described as representing a nationalist wing within the federal government including former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon and Senior Advisor Stephen Miller. By September 2017, The Washington Post journalist Greg Sargent observed that Trump's nationalism began to have wavering support among Trump voters. Some Republican members of Congress were also described as nationalists during the Trump era such as Representative Steve King and Senator Tom Cotton. In a 2021 American Journal of Sociology study competing understandings of American nationhood had emerged in the prior two decades. Nationalism has become sorted by party as Republican identifiers have come to define America in more exclusionary terms while Democrats have increasingly endorsed inclusive conceptions of nationhood.
In a 2016 paper in the American Sociological Review sociologists Bart Bonikowski and Paul DiMaggio reported research findings supporting existence of at least four kinds of American nationalists. Groups ranged from smallest to largest: disengaged creedal or civic nationalists ardent nationalists and restrictive nationalists. Ardent nationalists made up about 24% of their study and comprised the largest of the two groups considered extreme. Members closely identified with United States were very proud of country and strongly associated themselves with factors of national hubris. They felt true American must speak English and live in U.S. for most of life. Fewer but 75% believed true American must be Christian and 86% believed true American must be born in country. Restrictive nationalists had low levels of pride in America yet defined true American in ways that were markedly exclusionary. This group was largest because members comprised 38% of study respondents. Creedal nationalists whose members made up 22% of study respondents believed in liberal values and held fewest restrictions on who could be considered true American. The belief that being Christian is integral part of what it means to be true American separated creedal nationalists from other groups.
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Common questions
When did the first sense of being American emerge?
The first sense of being American emerged in the mid-18th century. Residents of the Thirteen Colonies identified with Britain until this time when they began to feel a distinct national identity.
What year did the Continental Congress last from 1774 to 1789?
The Continental Congress lasted from 1774 to 1789. This body united the Thirteen Colonies and issued the Declaration of Independence in early 1776 before fighting broke out in 1775.
Who was one of the highest-profile advocates for American nationalism in the early 20th century?
Theodore Roosevelt was one of the highest-profile advocates for American nationalism in the early 20th century. He insisted that citizens had to be 100% American rather than hyphenated Americans who juggled multiple loyalties.
Which amendment settled the fundamental question of national identity such as criteria for becoming a citizen of the United States?
The ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment settled the fundamental question of national identity such as criteria for becoming a citizen of the United States. Everyone born in the territorial boundaries of the United States or those areas subject to its jurisdiction became an American citizen regardless of ethnicity or social status.
How many kinds of American nationalists were reported in the 2016 paper by Bart Bonikowski and Paul DiMaggio?
Sociologists Bart Bonikowski and Paul DiMaggio reported research findings supporting existence of at least four kinds of American nationalists in their 2016 paper. These groups ranged from smallest to largest including disengaged creedal or civic nationalists ardent nationalists and restrictive nationalists.