--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For many on the left a hateful…" description: "\"For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become a self-congratulatory lifestyle.\" — Shelby Steele" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png" --- # For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become… ![“For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become a self-congratulatory lifestyle.” quote by Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png) > “For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become a self-congratulatory lifestyle.” [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote criticizes a segment of the left for adopting anti‑American sentiment as a self‑congratulatory identity. **In simple terms:** Some leftists wear anti‑Americanism as a badge. Key Takeaway Question the motives behind political identity. Themes politics identity nationalism Mood critical analytical Type political commentary When to use this quote - political discourse - media commentary - activism - public policy Key Concepts self‑congratulation ideological echo chambers Questions to Reflect On - What drives people to adopt oppositional identities? - How can constructive patriotism be fostered? A Different Perspective Not all leftists share this view; risk of overgeneralization. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Americanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americanism/) [Americanism Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americanism-self-6141017/) [Anti Americanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-americanism-698154/) [Become](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/become/) [Hateful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hateful/) [Hateful Anti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hateful-anti-5982017/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Left Hateful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-hateful-6141016/) [Lifestyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifestyle/) [Many](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/many/) ## Related quotes > [Why ... do the myths of America the Hateful take such powerful hold? Because anti-Americanism provides a useful emotional function which goes beyond logic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gove/why-do-the-myths-of-america-the-hateful-take-such-powerful-hold/) [Michael Gove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gove/) > [The Trump administration has taken the fight to those espousing hateful anti-Semitic views.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-o-brien/the-trump-administration-has-taken-the-fight-to-those-espousing/) [Robert C. O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-o-brien/) > [Without an ugly America to loathe, there is no automatic esteem to receive. Thus liberalism's unrelenting current of anti-Americanism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/without-an-ugly-america-to-loathe-there-is-no-automatic-esteem-to/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [You can be horrified by the state of the prisons, the misery in certain neighborhoods of its cities, or their level of poverty. Anti-Americanism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-henri-levy/you-can-be-horrified-by-the-state-of-the-prisons-the-misery-in/) [Bernard-Henri Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-henri-levy/) > [“Anti-Americanism is in the process of being consecrated into an ideology. The term 'anti-American' is usually used by the American establishment to discredit and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/anti-americanism-is-in-the-process-of-being-consecrated-into-an/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Some anti-Americanism derives simply from our being a colossus that bestrides the earth. But much anti-Americanism derives from the role U.S. political, economic and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-power/some-anti-americanism-derives-simply-from-our-being-a-colossus-that/) [Samantha Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-power/) > [Cheap anti-Americanism will eventually have consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-davis-hanson/cheap-anti-americanism-will-eventually-have-consequences/) [Victor Davis Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-davis-hanson/) > [“Anti-Americanism is not some bitter mental disorder inflamed by conspiracy theories and misplaced furies and envy. It is a broken heart, a defensive crouch,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-hansen/anti-americanism-is-not-some-bitter-mental-disorder-inflamed-by/) [Suzy Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-hansen/) > [“Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has several times made statements to the effect that we Europeans should not cultivate a superficial anti-Americanism. But mine isn't superficial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/chancellor-gerhard-schr-der-has-several-times-made-statements-to-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In Europe, anti-Americanism is much more a hobgoblin of the political, cultural, and religious elites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-francois-revel/in-europe-anti-americanism-is-much-more-a-hobgoblin-of-the-political/) [Jean Francois Revel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-francois-revel/) > [Anti-Americanism is often the product of limits on free speech, education systems that promote bias and the practice of some leaders of saying one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-blinken/anti-americanism-is-often-the-product-of-limits-on-free-speech/) [Antony Blinken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-blinken/) > [Canadians were the first anti-Americans, and the best. Canadian anti-Americanism, just as the country's French-English duality, has for two centuries been the central buttress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-granatstein/canadians-were-the-first-anti-americans-and-the-best-canadian-anti/) [Jack Granatstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-granatstein/) > [Anti-Americanism is as old as the Republic--a historical constant, which is only remotely related to specific American behavior. So what is new? Andrei Markovits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-joffe/anti-americanism-is-as-old-as-the-republic-a-historical-constant/) [Josef Joffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-joffe/) > [I have absolutely no doubt that there is an intense anti-Americanism in all Western Europe, and I think the reason for that is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-have-absolutely-no-doubt-that-there-is-an-intense-anti-americanism/) [Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/) > [Given the level of anti-Americanism in the world, given the level of frustration with the United States throughout the Muslim world, you've got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-kaplan/given-the-level-of-anti-americanism-in-the-world-given-the-level-of/) [Robert D. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-kaplan/) ## More by Shelby Steele > [When blacks become humanly visible, when their true beliefs are known, their mask shatters and their symbiotic bond with whites is broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/when-blacks-become-humanly-visible-when-their-true-beliefs-are-known/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [I alienated myself from the academic world almost entirely because it's a left-wing world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/i-alienated-myself-from-the-academic-world-almost-entirely-because-it/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Freedom is just freedom. It is a condition, not an agent of change. It does not develop or uplift those who win it. Freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/freedom-is-just-freedom-it-is-a-condition-not-an-agent-of-change-it/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [In Vietnam, America fought one whose communism was driven by an underlying nationalism, the desire to live free of the West. Whatever one may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/in-vietnam-america-fought-one-whose-communism-was-driven-by-an/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Our great presidents have been stewards, men who broadly identified with the whole of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/our-great-presidents-have-been-stewards-men-who-broadly-identified/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [No doubt Israel and America have made mistakes in the Middle East. Certainly, Israel was born at the price of considerable dislocation and suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/no-doubt-israel-and-america-have-made-mistakes-in-the-middle-east/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [And if you want to make many of our black leaders angry, just tell them that racism is not the number problem that black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/and-if-you-want-to-make-many-of-our-black-leaders-angry-just-tell/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Thomas Sowell, among many others, has articulated the power of individual responsibility as an antidote to black poverty for over 40 years. Black thinkers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/thomas-sowell-among-many-others-has-articulated-the-power-of/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton cannot write a timeless letter to us from a Birmingham jail or walk, as John Lewis did in 1965,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/jesse-jackson-and-al-sharpton-cannot-write-a-timeless-letter-to-us/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [My father bought three ramshackle houses, rebuilt them, rented them out, kept clawing his way up the ladder. A man with a third grade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/my-father-bought-three-ramshackle-houses-rebuilt-them-rented-them-out/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Whatever I'm doing, I try to write well. I try to give the reader a nice, clean well-written surface, where the writing is transparent.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/whatever-i-m-doing-i-try-to-write-well-i-try-to-give-the-reader-a/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [We have laws on the books. If somebody's discriminating against you, I strongly advocate suing them. That's the most effective thing you can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/we-have-laws-on-the-books-if-somebody-s-discriminating-against-you-i/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [The first thing I ever heard about Barack Obama was that he had a white mother and a black father. Interestingly, the person who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/the-first-thing-i-ever-heard-about-barack-obama-was-that-he-had-a/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Racism is endemic to the human condition, just as stupidity is. We will always have to be on guard against it. But now it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/racism-is-endemic-to-the-human-condition-just-as-stupidity-is-we-will/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Without an ugly America to loathe, there is no automatic esteem to receive. Thus liberalism's unrelenting current of anti-Americanism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/without-an-ugly-america-to-loathe-there-is-no-automatic-esteem-to/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) [Explore all 132 Shelby Steele quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) ## More Americanism quotes > [I don't see much future for the Americans ... it's a decayed country. And they have their racial problem, and the problem of social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-don-t-see-much-future-for-the-americans-it-s-a-decayed-country-and/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [This American system of ours,call it Americanism,call it capitalism,call it what you will,gives each and every one of us a great opportunity if we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-capone/this-american-system-of-ours-call-it-americanism-call-it-capitalism/) [Al Capone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-capone/) > [“I'm an American, our names don't mean shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/i-m-an-american-our-names-don-t-mean-shit/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [Louis Brandeis started off by embracing the Theodore Roosevelt notion that hyphenated Americanism was unpatriotic. You couldn't have dual loyalties. But then he thinks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/louis-brandeis-started-off-by-embracing-the-theodore-roosevelt-notion/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [“Cherokee's American, Ned. It don't get more American than that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-d-estleman/cherokee-s-american-ned-it-don-t-get-more-american-than-that/) [Loren D. Estleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-d-estleman/) > [You don't know Mexico, man. You have trivialized Mexico. You are a fool about Mexico if you think that Mexico is five blocks. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/you-don-t-know-mexico-man-you-have-trivialized-mexico-you-are-a-fool/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Whether one traces his Americanism back three centuries to the Mayflower, or three years to the steerage, is not half so important as whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/whether-one-traces-his-americanism-back-three-centuries-to-the/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [Given the level of anti-Americanism in the world, given the level of frustration with the United States throughout the Muslim world, you've got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-kaplan/given-the-level-of-anti-americanism-in-the-world-given-the-level-of/) [Robert D. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-kaplan/) > [I am not a Republican, nor a Democrat, nor an American, and got sense enough to know it. I am one of the 22…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-am-not-a-republican-nor-a-democrat-nor-an-american-and-got-sense/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Without an ugly America to loathe, there is no automatic esteem to receive. Thus liberalism's unrelenting current of anti-Americanism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/without-an-ugly-america-to-loathe-there-is-no-automatic-esteem-to/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [Americanism demands loyalty to the teacher and respect for his lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bainbridge-colby/americanism-demands-loyalty-to-the-teacher-and-respect-for-his-lesson/) [Bainbridge Colby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bainbridge-colby/) > [I have absolutely no doubt that there is an intense anti-Americanism in all Western Europe, and I think the reason for that is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-have-absolutely-no-doubt-that-there-is-an-intense-anti-americanism/) [Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/) > [The spiritual kinship between Lincoln and Whitman was founded upon their Americanism, their essential Westernism. Whitman had grown up without much formal education; Lincoln…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-lee-masters/the-spiritual-kinship-between-lincoln-and-whitman-was-founded-upon/) [Edgar Lee Masters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-lee-masters/) > [Americanism is a question of principle, of purpose, of idealism, of character. It is not a matter of birthplace or creed or line of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/americanism-is-a-question-of-principle-of-purpose-of-idealism-of/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [I don't know much about Americanism, but it's a damn good word with which to carry an election.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-g-harding/i-don-t-know-much-about-americanism-but-it-s-a-damn-good-word-with/) [Warren G. Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-g-harding/) [Browse all 107 Americanism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americanism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become a self-congratulatory lifestyle.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Shelby Steele" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-americanism-has-become-a-self/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Americanism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-americanism-has-become-a-self/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b5/shelby-steele-3370_americanism_for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-amer_802234.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For many on the left a hateful anti-Americanism has become a self-congratulatory lifestyle.” — Shelby Steele", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Shelby Steele", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For many on the left a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-americanism-has-become-a-self/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/for-many-on-the-left-a-hateful-anti-americanism-has-become-a-self/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```