When unity is too much to ask for, let’s seek solidarity

As this year’s campaign season winds down, Minnesota is once again in a moment where emotions run high and divisions are amplified. Some of us lean into (or are sucked into) the divisiveness and anger and fear. Some articulate a desire to get back to a time where our divisions weren’t so bad. 

I was thinking about this in September, when the country marked the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. As always, the commemorations brought a wave of reflection — not just about the terror of that day, but about the sense of unity many people remember from the weeks that followed. My social media was filled with posts from those who lived through it, recalling a moment when Americans supposedly stood shoulder‑to‑shoulder, differences set aside.

There’s truth in that memory. Shock and grief can be connective. Especially when “Americans” — a label so many of us wear, despite so many differences — we...