| Photo by Margarida CSilva on Unsplash
Group affiliation is a natural inclination of the human social mind, a consequence of social evolution. It’s a relic of early man’s drive for survival. There was safety in numbers. The larger the group one belonged to, the safer one felt and the greater the group’s survival chances against outside threats and adversities.
Affiliation defines one’s belongingness to a social unit, be it a tribe, a neighborhood, a gang, an ethnic group, or even a country. Symbols are invented or adopted to mark an individual’s group affiliation, a badge, a distinct tattoo, an ID, a flag, a coat of arms, a language, even skin color, and other accoutrements imbued with meaning. These items carry meanings ranging from philosophies, beliefs, and ideologies that often separate them from others. Subgroups have distinct ideologies or beliefs within a given affiliation, such as a nation. Among religious groups, there are different sects, or a nation’s political parties, for example.
Group affiliation becomes part of one’s identity. An individual can have various affiliations, starting from the larger group where he belongs, his nationality, for example, to other forms of group memberships, such as a profession, a sports club, a religious group, a political party, etc. Each of these becomes part of one’s identity and has its distinct mindset that separates one from the next person with other affiliations and mindsets.
The tyranny of group affiliation begins when an individual or group becomes exclusive, considers themselves superior, and treats non-members as threats, inferior, or even demonizes them as competition or enemies to be avoided or eradicated. The history of human civilization is replete with tragic examples. The plight of the Jews from ancient time to recent history or the destructive wars in the Middle Ages or the genocides in Africa, Middle East, Asia, or the Balkans in recent times, were monumental testaments to humanity’s delusional sense of separation among themselves in the name of political or religious ideologies, ethnic affiliations, or nationalities.
The concept of group affiliation is a reified social construction that breeds conflict when exploited by a demagogue to advance a self-serving agenda. Rallying and inciting affiliate members of a group to threats, real or imagined, are common ploys. Inflammatory rhetoric built on lies demonizes perceived adversaries, and a call to action is made to eliminate the source of fear. Fear of “the others” becomes an effective instrument to control followers and prosecute an agenda.
Today, we see this shared delusion of separateness between competing affiliations based on faith, race, political ideologies, and geographical boundaries. Policies are made to exclude and persecute “others” considered threats to the group’s interests, or weapons are invented to protect a nation’s interests. Group affiliation is a fetter of the mind that divides and moves us away from achieving our inherent unity.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dr. Fernando B. Perfas is an addiction specialist who has written several books and articles on the subject. He currently provides training and consulting services to various government and non-government drug treatment agencies regarding drug treatment and prevention approaches. He can be reached at fbperfas@gmail.com.
