Tomorrow. Today.

The easiest way to find a definition is the use of a metaphor. In that way, I identify the solidarity as a brilliant. Thus, the solidarity is a brilliant which seems a bit different from every views and in every lights, but it is absolutely one and only.  Maybe, we could mention a small difference between them: the solidarity could have more explanation than faces of the brilliant and as long as the brilliant has more faces it will become more valuable although a concept will become more invulnerable, could say empty or meaningless. That is why we are here and looking for a right definition that can be ended in a description or in an introduction.

           **Note** Break with old school and do not look for a vertically build explanation. We do not need always a strict definition                     because with a logically well-build definition creates their own, not really existed (just created) framework, killing our                           creativity and imagination.

Of course, there are a million definition in most of the dictionaries such as  ~ is a union arising from common responsibilities or interests between members of groups, ~ is an agreement of feeling or action, especially among individuals with a common interests or as you wrote in the open call. But there are other several credible interpretation as well that define it such as sentiment, institutional practice, redistributive arrangements or paradigm.
Independently, that we are defining or do not the concept of solidarity or how we are doing this, we can agree that nowadays we have a solidarity crises – unfortunately.

To speak about a crises we should go back to the root, to the ancient times. Just shortly. In the ancient empires, the hierarchical orders, and every person and their acts were subordinated to the will of the emperor or to some special rules, habits originated from the previous generations and forefathers. This lead unsubstantiated privileges and rights.  It is needless but as the time passed, slowly but the demands for equality, respect and equal status become obvious in the communities.  The peak of this process was the Enlightenment and the French revolution under the motto of liberté, égalité and fraterité (freedom, equality and brotherhood). Thus, it could be said that the modern concept of solidarity, using as the synonym for brotherhood, is the result of the French revolution.

From this point of departure, we can state that the solidarity was born on the basis of shared identity, historical descent and equal membership in a community. From other point of departure, the solidarity was born on the basis of common responsibilities and interests or from on other point it was born on mutual support. Do not confuse yourself! Just remember it is a brilliant.

But to do more simply, without any misunderstanding and confusion, it is true that there is a common basis of the solidarity and this basis is the sameness. Naturally, the sameness can be depended on the environment or topic. For me, the objective sameness of solidarity is the overcoming of self-interest. Here, we arrived back to the train of thought of this essay, we have solidarity crisis because we are living in an interest-oriented world, where the only values are money and social status. This type of world has two primary fundaments.

First, the institutionalization of the society, or in other world the birth of welfare state. The system of the welfare state has changed the nature of solidarity because as earlier the people helped each other directly, now the states help the people indirectly, excluding the face-to-face interaction and the benefits of every positive consequences of the solidarity, as action. With the redistribution (taxes and contributions), the states have broken the relation between the real giver and receiver materializing the solidarity.

Second, the capitalism. The peak of rationalism and individualism, which is based on competition and where the people should prevail against other members of the community, has resulted really high level of individualism.  In an individualized world, people should do their own business based on their skills, creativity and knowledge and should not wait for others’ help. In this way, the urge for and readiness of solidarity has been slowly dying out, objectifying the relations and interactions.

Among the many arising question, it can be asked: What is next? We have already recognized the problem. We have already mentioned the main (possible) roots of the problem. So, now we should find a solution. Unfortunately, here comes the insurmountable obstacle – we do not have better working systems than the system of welfare states and the system of capitalism.
Thus, if the mountain will not to go the Mohammed… We should paste the solidarity to the existing systems. How? First you should paste the solidarity in your head, then in your action – bearing in mind that the solidarity is a free-will obligation, duty which makes people, animals and environment as important as you, then the mountain will go.

Golden rule: Primarily change yourself then the world. And the gap between sentiment and action will disappear. That is the key of solidarity.