Political Polarization: Historical Context
This is genuinely debated among historians and political scientists, with reasonable arguments on multiple sides.
Evidence it's worse now:
•Congressional voting patterns show increased party-line splits since the 1970s-80s
•Affective polarization (dislike of the opposing party/its members) has risen sharply in survey data
•Geographic and social sorting means fewer Americans have close relationships across party lines
•Media fragmentation allows people to inhabit different informational realities
Evidence that other periods were comparable or worse:
•The 1850s-60s literally ended in civil war over slavery
•The 1960s-70s saw political assassinations, violent riots, and bombings (thousands of bombings by domestic groups)
•The Gilded Age had extreme economic polarization and violent labor conflicts
•McCarthyism-era paranoia and blacklisting
•The 1790s featured brutal partisan press and fears the republic would collapse
What might actually be different now:
•Less elite consensus-building infrastructure than mid-20th century (which was itself a somewhat unusual low-polarization period)
•Polarization is more nationalized—local/state politics used to provide more cross-cutting identities
•Social media may accelerate outrage cycles in historically new ways
•Fewer moderate/overlapping voters between parties on policy specifically, even as "hatred" of the other side has grown
A key distinction: Some researchers separate policy polarization (actual disagreement on issues) from affective polarization (emotional hostility toward the other side). The latter seems to have grown more clearly than the former in recent decades.
My honest take: by some measures (violence, existential stakes) earlier periods were worse; by others (partisan animosity, media ecosystem fragmentation) current polarization has novel features. It's less "worse than ever" and more "different in character" from previous polarized eras.
What angle are you most interested in—the historical comparison, causes, or potential solutions?