The rhetoric of "us vs them" reinforces divisions and justifies violence from "summary" of The Myth of Religious Violence by William T Cavanaugh
The rhetoric of "us vs them" is a powerful tool that has been used throughout history to create and reinforce divisions between groups of people. This rhetoric works by simplifying complex social and political issues into a binary opposition between an in-group and an out-group. By framing conflicts in this way, it becomes easier to dehumanize the other side and justify violence against them. Once a group has been identified as the "other," it becomes easier to portray them as a threat to the in-group. This perceived threat is often exaggerated or fabricated in order to justify aggressive actions against the out-group. In this way, the rhetoric of "us vs them" can be used to justify violence as a defensive measure against an imagined enemy. The rhetoric of "...
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