The Beginning of Rebellion: How Americans Lost Their Sense of Stability

This chapter examines how the end of the Cold War reshaped American political life by shifting the main lines of conflict from international rivalry to domestic debate. Without a clear external adversary, divisions that had long been moderated by geopolitical confrontation increasingly surfaced within American society. The chapter explores how the weakening of Cold War political frameworks intensified cultural and ideological polarization, often described as the “culture wars.” Movements for racial justice, the rise of identity politics, and debates over immigration and national symbols transformed the meaning of American nationhood. At the same time, the global perception of the United States evolved as American military interventions, technological dominance, and the politics of globalization generated both admiration and resentment abroad. This chapter argues that contemporary American debates about foreign policy, national identity, and global leadership are deeply intertwined and reflect an ongoing search for stability in a post–Cold War world.