From Rhetoric to Reality: Uncovering Strategic Division and the Linkages Between Polarization and Inequality

In recent years we have witnessed a notable surge in inequality, polarization, and the proliferation of divisive narratives and disinformation across diverse socio-political contexts.

Countries worldwide face intensified divides and amplified rhetoric that undermines governance, democracy, and collective solidarity.

This paper aims to disentangle the threads of escalating global fragmentation, the dynamics fueling it, and emerging solutions to counteract its adverse effects. We explore:

• Global trends in perceptions of division, including divisive actors’ “playbook” of strategic division, perpetuated through “Strategically Divisive Narratives” (SDNs).
• Academic studies on different types of polarization—including false polarization driven by misperceptions and affective polarization characterized by negative feelings toward other groups—elite-level political polarization (defined here as ideological or partisan differences among politicians).
• A preliminary framework of policy interventions designed to address both the symptoms and root causes of strategic division
• Current data on trust and polarization.
• Impact of the digital revolution on polarization.

Finally, we equip policymakers with three overarching strategies to navigate the new and evolving political reality marked by precarity, disinformation, and backlash: “Targeted Universalism;” people-centered, inclusive, and forward-thinking approaches, and how policymakers can articulate and substantiate stronger narratives about the future of their nations and policies.

In this race against time, addressing challenges like inequality, climate change, and the proliferation of disinformation requires a unified effort. The COVID-19 pandemic has starkly emphasized the need for enhanced cross-regional international cooperation and collaboration and the swift exchange of effective strategies from community organizers to UN leaders. We need more collaborative endeavors involving diverse stakeholders from various regions, contexts, sectors, disciplines, and communities. By breaking down silos of knowledge and expertise and drawing international attention to these pressing concerns, the world can collectively strive to improve global standards in combating division.

“We are living in an age of polarization. Among communities and across regions, people are being driven apart by rising inequality, escalating conflicts, and record-breaking climate shocks. Misinformation and a breakdown of trust are tearing the social fabric and reducing space for meaningful public discourse.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres, March 13, 2024, speaking at the launch of the 2024 Human Development Report.