CONFORMITY VS. UNITY

 BY WALLACE CALEB BATES

Conformity and unity are not the same. We need to know the difference. 

 

As Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools." 

 

Living together does not mean legislating our perspectives or morality nor codifying what we believe others should practice into law through the legislative process.

 

In fact, doing so is inherently anti-American. Our official motto is "E pluribus unum," which is Latin for "Out of many, one." 

 

Our country is full of people who are different — different in backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures. Yet, despite those differences, we are bound together by something more significant than conformity: unity.

Unity does not require that we all think, act, or believe the same. It requires that we respect each other's right to exist, to express, and to pursue life, liberty, and happiness in our way.

 

Conformity, on the other hand, demands submission. It insists that individuality be sacrificed for the sake of a singular, dominant perspective. 

 

But a nation as diverse as ours cannot and should not be forced into a singular mold. When we attempt to legislate morality or enforce cultural sameness, we erode the very basis of freedom that makes this country great.

 

As Romans 12:18 instructs us, "If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

 

Unity allows for disagreement without division and for debate without dehumanization. It recognizes that a nation's strength is not in its sameness but in its ability to embrace difference while still working toward a common good.

 

If we are to take Dr. King's words to heart, we must resist the temptation to confuse unity with uniformity. Instead, we must learn to stand together — not because we are the same, but because we are willing to fight for each other's right to be different.

 

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