Francis Fukuyama: Populism, Polarization, and National Identity

Presented as part of the McCloskey Speaker Series featuring Francis Fukuyama, author of Identity: The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment in conversation with Elliot Gerson, executive vice president at The Aspen Institute. In 2014’s The Origins of Political Order, Fukuyama wrote about the decline of American Institutions at a time when powerful interest groups were on the rise. Since then, the world has seen an influx of political outsiders who seek to connect directly with “the people”. The people, however, tend to be a small segment of the population who are often defined by narrow identity terms. In his newest book, Fukuyama examines the origins and effects of modern identity politics and explores how countries can create national identities based on the common values of their populace.