The Art of Humanizing Politics
The dehumanization of politicians and their supporters distorts society's ability to deal with sociopolitical conflicts and divisions.
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In a biting critique of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu this past weekend, a U.S. senior administration official speaking on condition of anonymity argued that President Joe Biden’s decision to put America’s national interest above his personal ambition “creates the obvious contrast of how he has chosen to act, and how Bibi has acted.”1
Never mind that conflating Biden’s situation with that of Netanyahu’s demonstrates gross incompetence, intellectual dishonesty, or some combination of the two. One country’s domestic politics has almost nothing to do with the other.
The more pressing issue I have witnessed for some good years now is the tone in which people talk about politicians, both in Israel and the United States, as well as in many other countries.
Sometimes we forget that politicians are people. And all people — regardless of their position, power, or influence — have what my father calls “the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
It is easy to dehumanize those in power, especially when we disagree with their decisions or policies. We often hold them to higher standards, expecting them to be flawless and beyond reproach.
I am reminded by the famous Stoic quote by Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius:
“Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one.”
As such, it is important to remember that politicians are fallible and capable of making mistakes. They, too, have moments of brilliance and periods of failure. Plus, they face pressures and challenges that many of us neither fully understand nor have to contend with ourselves.
Thus, politicians are not all good, all bad, or all ugly. Each has a varying ratio of these three aspects — some more good, some more bad, or some more ugly — but none of whom are exclusively one of these three. To paint a politician as either “all good” or “all bad” is a tribalistic (bordering on authoritarian) oversimplification void of nuance, sophistication, and intellect.
We must also acknowledge that some politicians are better than others at hiding their “bad” and “ugly” sides — but this does not mean that these sides are nonexistent. The hardest lie to detect is omission, and omission is the name of the game for many politicians.
Oftentimes the more experience someone has in politics, the more adept they are at manipulating this game. In this regard, Biden and Netanyahu have an awful lot in common.
What’s more, politicians often operate within a system that can be both supportive and restrictive. They have to navigate a complex web of interests, from their constituents’ needs and wants, to the demands of their political parties, to the influences of lobbyists and special interest groups, to geopolitical nuances and and international affairs. This intricate balancing act can sometimes lead to decisions that may not always align with their personal values or the greater good.
Recognizing the humanity in politicians does not mean excusing their wrongdoings or poor decisions. Instead, it invites us to engage more thoughtfully with the political process. It encourages us to hold our leaders accountable while also offering them the grace to be human. By seeing politicians as people, we can foster a more empathetic and constructive dialogue about our shared future.
We can also recalibrate the ways in which we perceive our fellow citizens, including our family and friends. Think about all of the stories that you have heard about people disowning or unfriending others in their social circles because they disagree on politics, or on certain political events, including but certainly not limited to the Israel-Hamas-Hezbollah war. When we habitually dehumanize politicians, there can be a trickle-down effect that leads some people to view their family and friends through a similar lens.
I, for one, am passionate about upholding the values of democracy, which means I genuinely cherish diversity of thought, opinion, and sociopolitical approaches. A society which approaches differing points of view with increasing contempt is not democratic; it is fascist. They are plenty of fascist countries in this world. As far as I am concerned, we do not need another one.
There are also those who speak about politics as if they are “right” and others who do not agree are “wrong.” The reality is that every side thinks that they are “right” and every person thinks they are the “good guy” in their life story. Ultimately, the vast majority of issues are subjective, and those who think that their views are “right” or “better” are simply disrespectful elitists.
I have witnessed this attitude in Israel with regard to leftist elitism. They scorn Middle Eastern Jews, many of whom vote Likud (Netanyahu’s party), for choosing a party that does not (in the leftists’ eyes) benefit these Middle Eastern Jews’ historically economic and social hardships in Israel.
“It is clear they (the leftist Israelis) miss the point,” said Sheleg Ben Shitrit, a producer and artistic director at one of Israel’s main TV networks. “We vote according to our culture, we vote for those who do not underestimate our faith, our tradition, those who do not treat us as lacking understanding not able to decide and choose what is really important to us.”2
Ben Shitrit said this kind of behavior from Left-leaning Israelis is “the same arrogance from the first years of the state, when they saw us as culture-less and did not understand that we have different priorities that are no less legitimate.”
According to Nissim Mizrahi, a sociologist from Tel Aviv University, politics of universality — seen from a liberal point of view as key to correcting society’s ills — are experienced by Middle Eastern Jews as an identity threat, a problem rather than a solution.
This secular, liberal worldview can lead to “enlightened racism” which “tarnishes traditional, religious, ultra-Orthodox and other peripheral communities, and negatively labels their worlds, their way of life, and their culture,” explained Mizrahi.
“I call it liberal violence, for it is the distaste shown for any religious or national expression,” added Mizrahi. “For example, strong and opinionated religious women oppose the description of gender segregation as exclusion … I don’t see how you can deny the reality that groups in society differ in their conceptions of good and bad and what a moral life is.”
Laly Derai was born in Paris to parents who first immigrated from Tunisia to France, before moving to Israel. She is now a Likud activist and prominent figure in the Israeli media, known for her Right-wing positions. For Derai, Jewish misunderstandings over Israeli Middle Eastern Jews’ political preferences strike to the very heart of the issue: competing visions of Jewish identity.
“Living in Israel is for us, coming from Arab countries, the continuation of our Jewish identity,” said Derai. “Whereas the program presented by the Left is cosmopolitan — in which nationalism is overcome — we, Mizrahi (Middle Eastern) Jews, do not relate at all to this discourse, in which human and civil rights come before our Jewish identity.”
Derai added something powerful: “You have to understand that for us, the natives of the Arab countries, the State of Israel was not created because of the Holocaust, but because we wanted to realize a millennial dream.”
I do not share these anecdotes with you to imply that Israel’s Right is “better” than its Left — but to demonstrate that people in virtually every society have different perspectives, priorities, and visions. Therefore, the argumentative attacks that are often levied against “the other side” are typically off-base, because more than anything, they exhibit a blatant misunderstanding of “the other.”
For example, Israeli leftists claim that Right-wingers do not want to make peace with the Palestinians, as if all the times that Israel’s Left-wing politicians tried to achieve peace with the Palestinians succeeded.
In case you have not read a history book, I will save you the time: In 1993, 1995, 2000, and even in 2007 and 2008, leftist Israelis leading the country failed in this (admittedly noble) approach simply because Palestinian leadership (perhaps representative of their people) has been belligerently uninterested in recognizing and living peacefully alongside a Jewish state.
Netanyahu and his Likud party plainly understand this reality. And while there is plenty to accuse and criticize Netanyahu about (his “bad” and “ugly” sides), when it comes to the issue of the Palestinians and one of their chief sponsors, the Islamic Republic of Iran, I have no problem giving credit where credit is due.
“In ‘obvious contrast’ with Netanyahu, Biden put country first by leaving race — US official.” The Times of Israel.
“Why the right-wing Mizrahi vote is misunderstood in Israel.” Middle East Eye.
“We vote according to our culture, we vote for those who do not underestimate our faith, our tradition, those who do not treat us as lacking understanding not able to decide and choose what is really important to us.”
This is an excellent explanation of voter choice.
My dad used to tell me that we should always try to understand things from the other person's point if view. It took me years to understand that he didn't mean I had to agree with them. We just have to remember that our experiences affect our beliefs and decisions.
“a U.S. senior administration official speaking on condition of anonymity” if a SENIOR official doesn’t have the guts to openly speak he or she should be fired.