Putnam’s magnum opus was a wake up call to many Americans. Putnam’s diagnosis points a finger at the atomization caused by technological advances, which allow someone to, for example, talk to their friends on an iPhone all day long instead of having to interact face-to-face. Many college students have never heard of the Rotary Club, much less a group like the Lions Club, which has experienced a near 60 percent drop in membership since their peak in the early 50s. These groups, ubiquitous in the world Putnam grew up in, are foreign to millennials. The Kiwanis Club and Rotary International are service groups as well, the former concentrating on charity to youth. The Lions put more emphasis on charity-their name is an acronym for Liberty, Intelligence and Our Nation’s safety. The Elks were founded as an all-white and male social club (remaining all-white through the 70s) and currently boast 850,000 members. Beyond that, you encounter groups like the Lions Club and the Elks. Their philosophy self-identifies as a “beautiful system of morality… illustrated by symbols.” Freemason lodges focus on ritualistic internal proceedings, and are largely oriented around social activity. Putnam concentrates on the Freemasons, a fraternal organization that traces its roots back many centuries to ancient fraternities of stonemasons. While much of this withdrawal from the public forum has been a retreat from the political (i.e attending public meetings, working with political parties), equally important has been the withdrawal from service and fraternal groups. This change has manifested itself in a departure from civic participation. Putnam compiled a body of data showing how dramatically American modes of social assembly have changed. In 2000, social scientist Robert Putnam published “Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community,” which paints a picture of the evaporation of social organization in the U.S. But for fraternal groups like the Masons to service-based groups like the Kiwanis, the path towards irrelevance is unfolding quickly. Maybe “does not exist” is a touch too apocalyptic. Vestiges of these community organizations can be glimpsed online and off, but the trace stops there. Emails sent to three different local freemasons went without a response. The same went for my inquiry to the local Elks Lodge. So went the auto-response that I received after emailing the Order of Eastern Star, a masonic suborder open to women. Your message couldn't be delivered as the recipient's domain does not exist." "Delivery has failed to these recipients or groups.
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