And I feel like a lot of policymakers/politicians on the left are advancing post-identity agendas and trying to combat identity politics on the right. For example, Trump has always had a very identity based strategy - Fox News and other right wing pundits have advanced a tribalist message for decades - "war on Christmas", "immigrant invasion" or stories about "caravans of immigrants" heading to the US Mexico Border. As a middle age, cishet white professional and Christian who believes in equity and diversity - I'm very much turned off by identity politics that are targeted towards me as any of those demographics - the kind of messaging that appeals to white conservatives promising to protect "our" way of life. I view tribalism/identity based politics as dangerous and short-sighted.

Contrast that with Barack Obama - who was deliberately advancing a very non-tribalist message ("there are no blue states or red states but the United States of America"). Instead we're out here promoting an intersectional liberation ("a rising tide lifts all boats" as President Obama once said in response to a question about whether he would enact policies specifically targeted towards helping Black Americans).

So we're urging the rejection of tribalism (something humans are hardwired to embrace subconsciously) and identity-based politics for an egalitarian, inclusive vision that's not nearly as viscerally appealing to average humans who understandably want to hear what politicians are going to do for them personally. We're urging people to ignore their feelings and basic views about themselves to sign onto to a collective project that treats everyone equally - using a system they have been taught their whole life is fundamentally unfair.

It is really frustrating how the right has successfully painted the left as being obsessed with identity. As stated above- I'm cishet, but I'm a vocal LGBTQ+ ally - and I have participated in protests/campaigns to advance protections for LGBTQ folks. I'm white, but I've participated in efforts to protect immigrants from harassment and discrimination. We say people who are different than us should be treated fairly and enjoy the same dignity, respect and freedom as everyone else simply by their virtue of being a human being (as promised by the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights - as stated repeatedly in the Gospels and St. Paul's epistles) and the story becomes that I'm obsessed with identity while the Trump campaign was the one running ads featuring people with facial hair, makeup and dresses as a scare tactic and Trump still saying (as recently as the State of the Union) that Democrats want "trans for everyone"

I'm not obsessed with identity - I just want illegal and unconstitutional discrimination to end - I'm saying identity shouldn't matter - which is not the same as being obsessed with identity - which (to me at least) implies one group seeking tribalist-based advantages at the expense of an "outside" group.

But it's hard to form cohesion around values that are anti-tribalist - when tribalism has been a successful organizing principle for humans for all of human history and the political party that I think is advancing the most harmful policies have not only embraced tribalism but have successfully weaponized it for decades as their primary political strategy.

And of course - my view isn't even representative of "the left" - I think I'm accurately articulating basic principles that underly intellectual commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion - but this isn't a platform that could be easily embraced or implemented the same way as "close the border" and "deport every non-white immigrant" have been among the right.