ABSTRACT
Over the past few decades, racial and ethnic conflicts have become more intense in the United States and around the world. Populist leaders increasingly have deployed anti-immigrant policies and harsh racial rhetoric to mobilize voters and to dismantle long-standing democratic norms and institutions. Still, many citizens resist these strategies even when they might personally benefit from protectionism or the repression of disliked outgroups. Why do they do so? I think it’s because of group empathy. Far from being a naïve and risky worldview, those who are motivated to care and to take the perspective of others are uniquely positioned to benefit from the reciprocity that can result. These skills are vital for solving the mounting global problems we face. In this chapter, I discuss the origins and consequences of group empathy, a wellspring of energy for binding up the often-self-inflicted wounds of our multicultural body politic.
