Join a club, church, society, group, or, well, die.
This is the message of Harvard professor Robert Putnam’s lifelong work, encapsulated very well in his book, “Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community” (Amazon pb. $14.00). However, until April 17, Netflix will spare you the burden of reading, as they’ve captured the ideas very well in their documentary, “Join or Die,” by Rebecca and Pete Davis, in an easy-to-digest manner. Don’t just take my word for it, take a look at the official trailer on YouTube right here.
Putnam argues, in his well-researched work, that we learn to participate in democracy through groups and associations, and that this is beneficial for us in many ways. One of the ways is that it promotes longevity and happiness (or at least satisfaction) and teaches us how to participate. These are all very worthy considerations.
This is a piece that I highly recommend people watch with the young adults in their lives. Get them to see the value in associations, knowing the names of other people in their lives, and being connected. Help them to see that joining and belonging through real participation improves their lives and our society.
Two Michiana notables are interwoven into this documentary, lending it a local flavor and reminding us that we have people in our community who believe in some of these core messages. The Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy and Director of the Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, David Campbell, is frequently interviewed because he worked with Putnam on much of the research. Campbell’s breaking down of the research and its meaning for Democracy makes the narrative flow nicely in this documentary. Also, woven into the narrative very nicely is the only living South Bend mayor who has not settled in South Bend, former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. Buttigieg certainly is able to discuss the importance of participation and how it can transform; in fact, he was very good at getting South Bend residents to do just that with the projects he promoted in our community. Buttigieg’s success in South Bend was perhaps greatest when he brought people together around a common mission or goal, and perhaps that is the secret not just to happy relationships, happy families, happy cities, but happy nations.
Perhaps our city and nation need more common goals, less divisive politics, and more local groups, clubs, and ways to affiliate with one another across racial, economic, and gender groups. Perhaps this is the only way to save our schools, communities, and nation.
While I find it worrisome that Putnam assumes transactional relationships as the modus for some of the belonging that comes with building ‘social capital’ as he puts it, I do find the benefits to society real and worthwhile. If we can teach young people that belonging helps save our society and helps them personally, that’s great. If we can teach them that belonging and serving others just for the sake of it being the right thing, not for any transactional reason, all the better.
If you want to help, join a club, group, or church. If you already belong to one, join another. If you want to really help, start a way to gather people across traditional divides, be the solution you seek in the world.
© 2026 Brian S Collier. All opinions are those of the author. The author reserves all Rights and copyrights. To request permission to reprint any or all of this article, contact info@redresssouthbend.com.
Reprinted with permission of the author by Redress South Bend.
All opinions and views in this piece are attributed to the author and are not necessarily the thoughts or opinions of Redress South Bend.
