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In 2005, just as I was moving to New York to start teaching a classroom of Brooklyn first- graders,聽, 鈥� 鈥楳idwest鈥� Discovered Between East and West Coasts,鈥� which traded equally in stereotypes of snobby coastal elites and homespun, sweatsuited 鈥淢idwestern Aborigines.鈥� Back then, coastal alienation from the heartland was all fun and games. So many urban sophisticates were blind to the tenor of life of their fellow citizens in 鈥渇lyover鈥� states.

The 2016 election shattered this self-serving view of American politics.聽, a higher percentage than supported Mitt Romney in 2012 or John McCain in 2008. Now, the non-satirical media echo the Onion.

In the summer of 2016, The New Yorker published a deep dive from writer George Saunders with the headline 鈥溾�� Saunders found a 鈥渟et of struggling people 鈥� pitted against other groups of struggling people by someone who has known little struggle 鈥� [who is] indulging the fearful, xenophobic, Other-averse parts of their psychology and reinforcing the notion that their sense of being left behind has no source in themselves.鈥� NPR has converted 鈥渢alking to a white Trump voter in the Rust Belt鈥� into a . . , called it 鈥渢he media鈥檚 newfound, almost anthropological, interest in the angry white male.鈥�

Perhaps this is appropriate. We live in a new political era powered by white males with limited post-secondary education and a variety of cultural and economic grievances. It鈥檚 important to explore the anger that drove Trump to the forefront of the Republican Party 鈥� and the country. While Trump鈥檚 overall approval rating dropped to 32 percent, the lowest ever in a released Dec. 7, his job ratings continue to be divided by race, gender, and education. While 40 percent of men approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president, only 25 percent of women do. Just 24 percent of adults with postgraduate degrees, and 27 percent of those with four-year college degrees approve of Trump鈥檚 job performance, compared with 35 percent of those who never attended college. While his approval rate among white Americans is 41 percent, it鈥檚 just 7 percent with African-Americans and 17 percent with Hispanics.

But white men鈥檚 fears are not the only fears. We should also wonder: What happens when a country indulges its older citizens鈥� deepest anxieties about the diverse younger generations growing into their places in the national community? What, I wondered, do my old Brooklyn students think of Trump? Some were graduating from high school this spring. So I reached out to the mother of one of my former students, and within weeks, I was chatting with him and four of his teammates from Achievement First Brooklyn High School鈥檚 highly successful speech and debate team.

None could vote in 2016. But as champion debaters, with a crowded shelf of trophies to prove it, they keep a close eye on the fraught national arguments over American ideals 鈥� and competing visions for the country鈥檚 future. They will likely live with the consequences of the country鈥檚 decision in November for much longer than most 2016 voters ().

They are all children of immigrants, but that may be their only common identity. Esther Reyes, Esmeralda Reyes, and Carlos Morales identify as Latinx; Oluseyi Olaose is Nigerian; and Riann Ramkissoon-Hardeen is Yemeni-Indian. Some of them are immigrants themselves, while others were born in the United States. Some have undocumented parents. Others have parents who are U.S. citizens or have green cards. Some graduated this year 鈥� Riann headed to Bates College in Lewiston, Maine; Carlos to Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin; and Esther is at Yale University in New Haven this fall.

How does the United States look to them? How did they interpret Trump鈥檚 campaign to restore American greatness?

鈥淭he chaos was always there,鈥� says Riann. 鈥淲e just never recognized it until a white supremacist came into power.鈥�

There鈥檚 no sugarcoating it: the students鈥� view of the president 鈥� and the country 鈥� is bleak. Most describe a process of steady disillusionment with the United States, often one that began before the 2016 election.

Oluseyi says, 鈥淐oming from Nigeria, I had all these simple stories of what it was gonna be like 鈥� a happy place that, like, had freedom and justice and liberty for all. And then coming here and not experiencing that, and seeing the backlash and all the hate against people of color in this nation. I did not feel as though I should be part of such a community.鈥�

Riann echoes, 鈥淚 guess I never really thought of America as my community. I tried. I tried so hard to 鈥榝it into鈥� this society. And I never really found myself here.鈥�

Nonetheless, the students talk about tears and shock on Election Day a year ago, hazy memories of a day clouded in disbelief. Esmeralda describes 鈥渉aving a meltdown鈥� at school the next day. Her sister Esther describes crying for the better part of the day, and she can鈥檛 remember whether she made it to her morning classes.

Carlos says, 鈥淚 think the country takes it day by day, hoping that this day is not our last day.鈥�

The election changed Riann鈥檚 daily life. 鈥淏eing an immigrant, my mom enforces that I walk around with my green card, because in my neighborhood, [immigration officers are] really prevalent 鈥� It鈥檚 scary to know that the nation that you once had so much faith in and your family came to for you to seek better opportunities is not necessarily that nation anymore. It hurts a lot, and I guess that鈥檚 how it鈥檚 going to continue.鈥�

This is the paradox of America in 2017: the movement to make older white people feel that America is once again great has left America鈥檚 Future 鈥� diverse young adults 鈥� feeling anything but. And it鈥檚 built on an old formula: Populism is the combination of common anxieties with vulnerable targets into a driving current in the national political bloodstream. The reaction inevitably creates a new target, a fantasy that is both catalyst and byproduct. In There Goes the Neighborhood, immigration advocate Ali Noorani suggests that our contemporary political situation partly derives from the fact that many white Americans 鈥� many Trump voters 鈥� can鈥檛 find a satisfying answer to this question: 鈥淚n a racially, ethnically, and culturally diversifying society, where do white Christians fit?鈥�

America has proven to be decidedly unexceptional: our populists echo ethno-nationalists the world over when they argue that 鈥淢aking America Great Again鈥� means targeting immigrant families.

White Americans鈥� anxieties boil over in ugly ways. Recall, for instance, GOP Rep. Steve King鈥檚 worry that 鈥渙ur civilization鈥� in the United States can鈥檛 be 鈥渞estore[d]鈥� with 鈥渟omebody else鈥檚 babies.鈥� Between such revealing outbursts, these fears usually with lines the state of our Anglo-American heritage or 鈥溾�� or attacks on Islam.

In this telling, new arrivals imperil an Anglo-American cultural tradition that is purportedly essential to American strength. While radical ethno-nationalists flirt with arguing that Muslims or non-Europeans are somehow essentially unsuited to participate in U.S. democracy, moderate conservatives focus on immigrant assimilation. They argue that immigrants 鈥� particularly those from traditions somehow distant from the United States鈥� 鈥� must be taught the cultural trappings of democracy.

Even the moderate conservative position is prone to derailment. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have the same problem of assimilation [as Europe],鈥� said The Washington Post鈥檚 Charles Krauthammer in with Fox News鈥檚 Tucker Carlson after the June terrorist attacks in London. However, he warned, 鈥渢he bilingual education fad鈥� could provide domestic competition for America鈥檚 culture, leave immigrant communities insufficiently assimilated, and open the country to terror attacks.

Clownish as these arguments are, they鈥檙e related to a serious position. Democratic citizenship takes practice. Most of us would agree that American democratic institutions run on particular kinds of social capital. Most of us understand that there are behaviors that make our common life better 鈥� anything from responsible saving to volunteering, conscientious parenting, and regular engagement with neighbors. Surely American civil society would be stronger if newly arrived immigrants behaved in these ways.

Fortunately, they do.

Research suggests that the view of immigrants as alienated, culturally hostile community destabilizers could not be. , researchers found that 鈥渁cross the board, the prevalence of antisocial behavior among native-born Americans was greater than that of immigrants.鈥� Immigrants were less likely to harm animals, start a fight, hurt someone on purpose, shoplift, or have their driver鈥檚 license suspended.

on U.S. immigration found that 鈥済reater concentrations of immigrants鈥� were linked to 鈥渕uch lower rates of crime and violence than comparable non-immigrant neighborhoods.鈥� Whatever the president claims about them, here in the real world, the factual world, immigrants tend to be model community members.

According to the report, they even have a uniquely 鈥渟teadfast belief in the American dream.鈥� And yet, through waves of insults, scaremongering, and even violence, Trump聽 seem determined to hammer that optimism out of them, to will an ugly caricature of immigrants into existence. They are creating that which they feared: a generation that does not feel part of the United States, that does not believe in the basic worth of the American project.

Trumpists may shrug at this; they may even nod along. The restoration of American greatness will be messy.

Their short-term political satisfaction is long-term political poison. When a movement dominated by white Americans treats immigrant Americans as enemies, these students take them seriously. The Trump Era is teaching them that they are not part of the American community, and that American democracy is dangerous to them.

Want to make them laugh? Ask them about the mindset and mechanics of making America great. Ask them to imagine being white in America and feeling as though 测辞耻鈥檝别 been given a raw deal, feeling like the country needs to be rebalanced to give you a fairer chance. Their eyes pop. Ask them to suspend their disbelief for a moment just to get the whole construct of our present moment off the ground: America, we hear, has forgotten white people 鈥� particularly white men. Tell these debaters, these scholars who have deferred so much in order to pursue their college dreams, that white men in large sections of the country are angry that a high school diploma is no longer sufficient to earn them a stable place in the middle class.

The room explodes in bitter, incredulous hysterics. 鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to say, 鈥業鈥檓 going to compromise with you鈥� when 测辞耻鈥檝别 had your way for so damn long 鈥� when does my day come?鈥� demands Carlos. 鈥淐ompromise is essential, but, like, right now, we have to get to their level first.鈥�

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a woman or when you鈥檙e a person of color, you鈥檙e not going to be viewed the same as someone who鈥檚 white and straight and a man,鈥� insists Riann. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e not going to be given the same opportunities.鈥�

They keep coming back to safety. 鈥淭he biggest fear that I have is that if you give people an inch, they鈥檒l take a mile; they鈥檒l see this very racist and prejudiced man as president and they鈥檒l say, 鈥楬ey, we can do whatever we want,鈥� 鈥� says Carlos. 鈥淧eople think that like, 鈥楬ey, I can take advantage of people because my president is in favor of me and not in favor of them.鈥� I think that鈥檚 just my biggest fear.鈥�

I ask the students about their hopes in Trump鈥檚 America. Some talk about feeling alienated from their dreams. What chance can they have of a fair shake in a country that elected such a man?

See, these students have had to chase the standard path to success in American society harder than anyone 鈥� because of the significant structural impediments that society has put in their way. Students at their school are from low-income families of color. As people of color in America, as children of immigrants growing up in Brooklyn, they are given slim margins for error, more and higher obstacles to surmount, and fewer supports on their way. Nonetheless, they spend the school year traversing the Eastern Seaboard debating the Electoral College, gender equity, and a crowd of issues related to race and politics in America. Somehow, these students still care.

But they still expect to be 鈥渕arginalized,鈥� no matter how hard they work or how carefully they tread. They wonder about giving Trump what he wants 鈥� about leaving. Esther and Oluseyi fantasize about corners of the world where men are not allowed, where everyone is a person of color, places like聽, a mythical-sounding, all-female Kenyan village.

Why stay? How can they begin to build the lives they鈥檝e imagined here, now? Esther鈥檚 father was deported before Trump was even elected. They talk about the bewilderment of meeting Trump supporters at debate competitions. The young Trumpists sometimes say that they disavow the president鈥檚 uglier rhetoric but still support his economic policies.

鈥淚f you鈥檙e voting for Trump, you鈥檙e voting for his views on social issues and refugees and immigrants,鈥� Oluseyi says, exasperation in her voice. How, as an immigrant, or as a child of immigrants, do you begin to explain that to a white competitor who thinks support for Trump is simply a matter of lowering tax rates? Esmeralda is paralyzed: 鈥淚 can鈥檛 change their opinions.鈥�

See, Trump has detonated the processes of discourse that might help to rebuild connections between these groups. He cements what these students have long suspected: in America, they are inextricably defined by their identities. It鈥檚 not only that the students see no place for themselves in Trump鈥檚 vision of the United States. It鈥檚 that they recognize the United States in Trump. He is not an aberration. He is not a deviation from American norms.

Trump is the norm.

Esther is scathing:

I think the American dream, it doesn鈥檛 apply to us, just because we didn鈥檛 make the American dream. The concept of an American dream was created, for me at least, by white settlers who used, like, manifest destiny and westward expansion. Their American dream was basically, like, kicking people out of their land. And like, that鈥檚 not my American dream. You could argue that it鈥檚 the same today, well, it鈥檚 morphed into something more subtle 鈥� the American dream we see in movies or in shows or in books, it鈥檚 an American dream for white people 鈥� I think we could make a new version of the American dream if we wanted to, but just because of its history and the way that people have used it in the past, I don鈥檛 think it exists.

Since last November, Trump鈥檚 opponents have torn at one another over how to move forward. What, erm, happened? What lessons should the country鈥檚 liberals, progressives, leftists, and assorted Trump opponents learn from the election? Some 鈥� 鈥� have blamed 鈥渋dentity politics鈥� for Trump鈥檚 rise. So the story goes, the left鈥檚 insistence on hearing and addressing grievances group by group does damage to our common American-ness, and/or de-emphasizes common problems facing economically vulnerable Americans, and/or alienates white Americans from Americans of color.

This is the conversation that many Americans want to have about Donald Trump, American democracy, and the future. They usually argue that Trump鈥檚 coalition can only be stopped by sublimating the concerns of different racial, ethnic, linguistic, and/or cultural groups into a broader class-based politics that can tempt white working-class (especially male) voters.

There may be a rational case for this position. It may have significant political merits. It imitates Trump鈥檚 signature move: It would elevate the grievances and anxieties of white, working-class Trump voters without considering how that approach might land with young, diverse, immigrant Americans.

But these students, on the cusp of adulthood, see their identities 鈥� their genders, races, ethnicities, and immigrant origins 鈥� as the most important factors giving their lives meaning. In his 2017 account of the global rise of populism, , writer Pankaj Mishra warns: 鈥淵oung members of racial and ethnic minorities, who awakened politically through the internet during the great economic crisis, try to protect their threatened dignity by insisting on being recognized as different.鈥�

When these students talk of the country鈥檚 future (and its past), they see it almost entirely through the lens of identity. In the wake 鈥� and constant roil 鈥� of Trump鈥檚 rhetoric, 鈥渙ur country鈥� narrows to match our tribes. 鈥淥ur鈥� country is no longer the common space, discourse, and society we share together, but the collection of those who resemble us.

鈥淭here are different Americas to different people,鈥� Esther says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 an America at school. At home, where we live, there鈥檚 an America. Wherever I go, there鈥檚 an America, because I was born here, my sisters were born here. My mom could technically be an American, because she鈥檚 lived most of her life here, but she鈥檚 still undocumented, so 鈥� Trump supporters don鈥檛 make America my home. They are the trespassers here.鈥�

So: Leave aside the internal coherence of the arguments for abandoning identity politics for a moment. Leave aside the political implications and any electoral calculations experts might make. Instead, imagine how these students hear such arguments. Consider how their shared and overlapping identities feel like their safeguard and shield.

Naturally, this story is too neat by half. Those frequent interviews of Trump鈥檚 base have repeatedly highlighted surprising (to reporters based in coastal cities, at least) examples of generosity to immigrants living in small Rust Belt towns. Perhaps they are skeptical of immigrants, but they cherish Jos茅 and Sofia鈥檚 family that lives down the street. Coin the hashtag: #NotAllTrumpVoters, or at least #NotAllTheTime.

Similarly, the students periodically talk of finding ways to engage with Americans from Trump鈥檚 coalition. Even the most critical, disillusioned students talk of working harder for justice, of engaging to address the country鈥檚 many sins. Riann talks of fighting to make equal rights a reality in the United States. Esther adds one category to her list of different Americas that transcends identity: 鈥淚 think the people who genuinely believe in openness are Americans.鈥�

Riann describes her American dream like so many young adults before her: 鈥渢o go to college 鈥� becoming who I want to be. And now, with what鈥檚 going on with America, using my voice to change the America we have today.鈥�

And even though Oluseyi declares, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe in the American dream,鈥� her personal project remains hopeful: 鈥淭o give back to this community, basically. It hurts me seeing people helpless and like, I don鈥檛 like myself for not being able to do much about it 鈥� I want to be able to give back and make people have better lives, especially people who look like me, who haven鈥檛 gotten opportunities.鈥�

But still, Trump opened a series of breaches in our common life; there is a gulf between his core supporters and these students. The United States鈥� national sins loom large in the students鈥� lives. They aren鈥檛 abstractions. They aren鈥檛 shadowy, faraway spectres 鈥渟tealing鈥� jobs or opportunities. They鈥檙e proximate, quotidian facts: parents deported, cars repossessed because the family paid a sibling鈥檚 college tuition bill instead of the auto loan, threats of police violence, daily indignities of integrating into American life, and countless other frustrations.

Against that backdrop, their persistence is as remarkable as their cynicism is predictable. Which leaves us in a bleak place. Populism that elides their identities could further alienate these new adults from the country鈥檚 economy, society, and culture. Long-standing demographic patterns, meanwhile, will continue to bring more children of immigrants into prominence in more aspects of American society 鈥� likely provoking deeper and more radical fears from Trump鈥檚 core supporters.

Now what? Might demographic trends settle the issue? As older, whiter Trump-supporting Americans pass away, they will be replaced by increasingly diverse generations. American pluralism is advancing, and Trump cannot stop it.

But, then again, these trends aren鈥檛 new. The United States has been getting more diverse for decades, and xenophobia, Islamophobia, and myriad other bigotries haunted the fringes of U.S. politics until Trump metastasized them into a unitary movement. Indeed, if rising pluralism helped spark cultural anxieties that brought Trump political success, it鈥檚 entirely possible 鈥� and even likely 鈥� that more pluralism will only add fuel to the fire. Just ask the residents of Charlottesville, Virginia.

No, demographic trends are no solution to what is ultimately a political problem. Increased American diversity may shuffle the political calculus for would-be heirs to the surviving members of Trump鈥檚 coalition, it but won鈥檛 single-handedly cure the country of the radicalized populism he has normalized.

The students know this, and they don鈥檛 dare get their hopes up when it comes to white Americans. 鈥淛ust leave me alone,鈥� says Carlos. 鈥淭rump took that veil off and [now] we鈥檙e fighting for 鈥� letting people live their lives.鈥� Is this surprising? How should they feel?

We can鈥檛 dodge the debate. The tension between these groups is unsustainable 鈥� and bad for democracy. Whatever else it is, democratic life requires taking part in the processes of government, but not only in a government. It鈥檚 also about contributing to an economy, feeling part of a shared culture, and broadly engaging in the common work of living together. Democracy says: You count. You matter. You have a chance here, so long as you鈥檙e willing to trust in the basic political procedures that govern our community.

What next, when that trust is broken? Whenever it becomes viable, the solution is likely to follow two paths. The first has been most聽, who argues that the United States needs a strong historical core that includes, and sustains, a fuller account of American pluralism. Students like the ones I interviewed in Brooklyn feel as unrecognized in America鈥檚 past as they do in its present.

鈥淎 lot of our history is just not 鈥� it鈥檚 not there,鈥� says Esther. 鈥淲e have to dig deep for our history.鈥� And while American history is replete with violence toward and marginalization of diverse voices, it also contains important examples of openness and generosity.

An honest account of American history is a prerequisite for building a better American present. Think of it as providing a common foundation for arguments over what the country should do next. Many of the United States鈥� current political divisions stem from the different accounts different groups of Americans have of the country they inhabit. An account of the United States that dispatches racism from the national scene with the end of the 1960s civil rights movement is an account that helps distance white Americans from non-white Americans who face it every day. The American story encompasses scenes both tragic and glorious; one way of bringing a more diverse country together is to ensure that the version we tell ourselves is as comprehensive and inclusive as possible. It needs to help everyone see themselves as part of a meaningful project.

But if a better, fuller public history is necessary, it鈥檚 also far from sufficient. Historians will not save the United States from the searing heat of partisan politics, let alone the bitterness of selfish anxieties. The second part of any effort to rebuild American discourse will necessarily rest upon building up new forums for debate in institutions that have not historically engaged on questions of diversity and immigration. In his book, Noorani describes meetings with pastors in a variety of churches in conservative towns and/or states. Faith leaders establish their moral authority by serving as trusted anchors for individuals and communities. When they speak out to affirm the importance of welcoming immigrants, they help bestow legitimacy on the rethinking of American cultural identity in a way that makes room for diverse immigrant families.

The United States needs more local institutions to engage in immigration conversations, broadly construed. Churches are not the only organizations that can serve this purpose, though they are often the best-placed to engage conservative Americans on moral questions related to immigration. Other familiar civil society lodestars 鈥� schools, health care institutions, athletic leagues, and more 鈥� can also lend their social capital to efforts to show how immigrants contribute to American communities.

Of course, any discussion of solutions is premature in a moment when the federal government is maintaining a 鈥淰ictims of Immigration Crime Engagement鈥� (flagrantly acronymed VOICE) office 鈥渢o acknowledge and serve the needs of crime victims and their families who have been impacted by crimes committed by removable criminal aliens,鈥� a moment when things look likely to get worse before they improve. Each day brings fresh fuel for our fears.

The president鈥檚 regular assaults on basic norms of democratic governance make it hard to trust public institutions to deliver stable, predictable, supportive decisions. Meanwhile, the seeming stall of Trump鈥檚 legislative agenda 鈥� and the ongoing headwinds from his campaign鈥檚 connections to Russia 鈥� prompt the president to constantly seek out ways to bolster support from his base. For that purpose, nothing serves quite as well as ugly rhetoric about the 鈥渄angers鈥� of Muslims in the United States and around the world, or the supposed insecurity of the country鈥檚 border with Mexico.

The United States has not yet ceased harming its public institutions and the cohesiveness of its society. It took years to build the trust currently being frittered away. When hardworking children of immigrants on the cusp of attending college, on the very brink of seeing their years of playing by the rules pay off, when students like these doubt the value and fairness of working within the American system, this is as good a signal as any that the real dangers of Trump鈥檚 populism will take years to work out.

America鈥檚 future growth and prosperity increasingly depend on children of immigrants. , 鈥淐hildren of immigrants accounted for the entire growth in the number of young children in the United States between 1990 and 2008.鈥� . The United States鈥� future looks much more racially, linguistically, ethnically, culturally, and religiously diverse than its past 鈥� or even its present.

Esther is deeply aware of the stakes: 鈥淚 need the country to be redeemable,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hat other place in the world is going to uphold democracy? I mean, we鈥檙e not upholding it now, but 鈥� one man cannot be the destruction of every single thing that my people have died over.鈥�

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