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"How can liberals offer 'stories of peoplehood' that can compete with illiberal populist and nationalist stories? Rogers Smith has long argued for the importance of 'stories of peoplehood' in constituting political communities. By enabling a people to tell others and themselves who they are, such stories establish the people's identity and values and guide its actions. They can promote national unity and unity of groups within and across nations. Smith argues that nationalist populists have done a better job than liberals in providing stories of peoplehood that advance their worldview: the nation as ethnically defined, threatened by enemies, and blameless for its troubles, which come from its victimization by malign elites and foreigners. Liberals need to offer their own stories expressing more inclusive values. Analyzing three liberal stories of peoplehood--hose of John Dewey, Barack Obama, and Abraham Lincoln--Smith argues that all have value and all are needed, though he sees Lincoln's, based on the Declaration of Independence, as the most promising."--

Intro -- Contents -- Introduction -- Part I. Theorizing Peoplehood -- One. Stories of Peoplehood and the Spiral of Politics -- Two. A Theory of the Politics of People Building -- Three. Narrative Structures and the Politics of Peoplehood (with Meral Ugur Cinar) -- Four. Personal Stories and Communal Stories in the Politics of Peoplehood -- Part II. Exploring American Peoplehood -- Five. Individual Rights in American Stories of Peoplehood -- Six. Contesting Meaning and Membership in American Peoplehood -- Part III. Moderating Peoplehood -- Seven. From Providentialism and Exceptionalism to a Politics of Moderate Peoplehood -- Eight. The American "Promiseland" and Mexican Immigrants -- Nine. Multiple Citizenships and the Legacies of Imperialism -- Epilogue -- Acknowledgments -- Notes -- References -- Index.

Is civic identity in the United States really defined by liberal, democratic political principles? Or is U.S. citizenship the product of multiple traditions-not only liberalism and republicanism but also white supremacy, Anglo-Saxon supremacy, Protestant supremacy, and male supremacy? In this powerful and disturbing book, Rogers Smith traces political struggles over U.S. citizenship laws from the colonial period through the Progressive era and shows that throughout this time, most adults were legally denied access to full citizenship, including political rights, solely because of their race, ethnicity, or gender. Basic conflicts over these denials have driven political development and civic membership in the U.S., Smith argues. These conflicts are what truly define U.S. civic identity up to this day.Others have claimed that nativist, racist, and sexist traditions have been marginal or that they are purely products of capitalist institutions. In contrast, Smith's pathbreaking account explains why these traditions have been central to American political and economic life. He shows that in the politics of nation building, principles of democracy and liberty have often failed to foster a sense of shared "peoplehood" and have instead led many Americans to claim that they are a "chosen people," a "master race" or superior culture, with distinctive gender roles. Smith concludes that today the United States is in a period of reaction against the egalitarian civic reforms of the last generation, with nativist, racist, and sexist beliefs regaining influence. He suggests ways that proponents of liberal democracy should alter their view of U.S. citizenship in order to combat these developments more effectively

How is a sense of belonging to a political community created? Rogers Smith emphasises the importance of 'stories of peoplehood', which present membership as intrinsic to our identity. Combining theory with examples from around the world, this is an original and provocative account of how nations are bound together

Is civic identity in the United States really defined by liberal, democratic political principles? Or is U.S. citizenship the product of multiple traditions - not only liberalism and republicanism but also white supremacy, Anglo-Saxon supremacy, Protestant supremacy, and male supremacy? In this powerful and disturbing book, Rogers Smith traces political struggles over U.S. citizenship laws from the colonial period through the Progressive era and shows that throughout this time, most adults were legally denied access to full citizenship, including political rights, solely because of their race, ethnicity, or gender. Basic conflicts over these denials have driven political development in the U.S., Smith argues. These conflicts are what truly define U.S. civic identity up to this day. Smith concludes that today the United States is in a period of reaction against the egalitarian civic reforms of the last generation, with nativist, racist, and sexist beliefs regaining influence. He suggests ways that proponents of liberal democracy should alter their view of U.S. citizenship in order to combat these developments more effectively.

AbstractAuthoritarian nationalism is on the rise in many countries around the world, threatening liberal democracies. Many on the left rightly fear that any and all celebrations of national identities risk heightening these dangers. It is questionable, however, whether illiberal nationalism can be defeated politically without some reliance on progressive stories of national identity that advance themes of equality, freedom, and inclusion in ways that resonate with many of the traditions in which those whom progressives seek to mobilize have been raised.