United We Stand, Divided We Fall

I was lucky to make my life in Champaign-Urbana (CU) and work with people from all over the world. On a wall in my office, I installed a world map that measured 9 x 14 feet. Coworkers would walk into the room and immediately point to a spot on the map and tell their story about growing up in their particular country and how they eventually ended up building a life in CU. With each story I heard over the years, it became clear to me that we all want the same thing in our lifetime’s “pursuit of happiness.”

Considering the diversity of people that I worked with in terms of nationality, race, religion and politics, I cannot remember one confrontational word ever spoken that created divisiveness among us. That’s because we all learn from experience that the workplace is not the venue to air our respective ideologies.

Work is survival. We work so that we can do something productive and fulfilling to earn money, so we can provide for the ones we love. The “rule of law of the workplace” established by boards of directors, owners and executives, is quite simple: You’ve got a job to do, so show up on time, do your job in a productive manner, and get along with your coworkers.

In the workplace, we very much practice a “live and let live“ philosophy (an old Dutch proverb) encouraging tolerance, acceptance, and peaceful coexistence. We allow others to think and act as they choose without judgment, with the expectation of receiving the same respect in return. We all want to do the best we can in our jobs.

The national narrative these days is that we are divided, but when you consider that half of our waking lives is spent at the workplace, the live and let live philosophy (LLL) and the cooperation (non-partisan) it inspires, is not only impressive, but it has been the most critical binding force for sustaining our civil democracy.

The majority of us bring home that philosophy after work as we integrate into our neighborhoods. Champaign-Urbana enjoys a lucky balance between being not too small and not too big in both population and physical size, such that we bump into friends, neighbors and colleagues all over town. For the most part, we work and play together in a friendly and mutually respectful way.

Another powerful example of this is in times of disaster. No matter how different we are, in times of disaster we stand together to help each other survive and rebuild. “Catastrophe compassion“ reminds us of our innate humanity and beautifully reveals our true colors.

It’s important to understand that LLL does not mean allowing someone to “go crazy.“ It requires that we mutually respect the rule of law, the constitutional guard rails, and the norms that have been learned and applied over hundreds if not thousands of years through trial and error, having learned what works and doesn’t work to keep the peace. We must accept these tried-and-true requirements for the Common Good. LLL under these conditions allows us to be our unique selves, free to work and live and play however we choose, allowing us the freedom and independence we value so much as Americans.

This is all well and good except, we must not be naïve to the fact that an elite minority of people who seek power, control and wealth, are not afraid to violate the rule of law, the constitution, and norms with impunity to achieve their personal goals. Their message to the American worker is, “Do as I say, not as I do.“ It is not enough to just keep our nose to the grindstone in the workplace, but we must also remain vigilant against corrupt, powerful and greedy forces that would take advantage of our trust. We must stand up and speak out against tyranny whenever and wherever it raises its ugly head. We should not be fooled by damaging disinformation being broadcast through social media that is designed to shock us, anger us, radicalize us, deceive us, and even depress us.

If we are at risk of losing our democracy, do not expect that there will be a singular political or religious or secular Messiah to come along and save it. Rather, have faith that the combined American workforce in solidarity – “We The People” -- is the great protector of our democracy by showing up each and every day to do good work for the Common Good.

“United we stand, divided we fall.” (Aesop)