How Do We Fix It?

For many Americans, taking part in a debate is just about the last thing they’d put on their dance card.But Braver Angels debates are different. In this episode Sam Rechek explains why.“Braver Angels debates are fun,” Sam tells us. “We’ve created a structure where people can have productive disagreements about contentious issues. That’s something many yearn for, and they get interested in really fast.”Unlike most debates, there are no “winners” or “losers”. Speakers at Braver Angels debates are often passionate, but they can’t interrupt or be snarky about the other side. Compelling arguments are made on both sides in a respectful way. Different viewpoints about an issue are warmly welcomed, but all comments must be addressed to the chair, not directly to the person you disagree with.“There’s a real hunger for environments where people can have productive disagreements and mutual understanding”, says Sam. In our interview we also discuss LAPP skills, and the concept of courageous citizenship.Many of our beliefs about politics and controversial events are formed, or at least influenced, by fleeting impressions: Hot takes on social media, sound bites on TV and radio, and comments by those we know. This episode makes the case for going deeper and spending time with those you may passionately disagree with.Sam Rechek is Program Coordinator for the Braver Angels Debate Team. Several years ago as a undergraduate at the University of South Florida, Sam worked with FIRE - the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression and Heterodox Academy. He founded a student organization, First Amendment Forum—1AF—which developed into a venue for contentious discourse and advocacy for free speech principles. Sam holds a BA in Philosophy and Political Science from USF and an MA in Legal and Political Theory from University College London."How Do We Fix It?" reports on the people, projects and ideas of Braver Angels, the nation's largest cross-partisan volunteer-led movement to bridge partisan divides. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pick a controversial topic. Whether it’s immigration, race, climate change, the role of religion, or the economy, many of our assumptions that we view as completely reasonable can seem whacky or wrong to others. This may well include very smart, thoughtful people, who’ve had very different life experiences than our own.Our guest for this episode is Chauncey Williams, a Democratic-leaning Braver Angels volunteer in Denver.He was shocked when Donald Trump was first elected President in 2016. But instead of retreating into his political silo, Chauncey began a unique project. On different occasions he set up a table with two chairs in local parks, and invited total strangers to have conversations about important public matters. “One of the important things I came to realize is that I walk into a lot of those conversations with a host of assumptions about folks that aren’t always true,” Chauncey told us. “I’ve often been fascinated and humbled by realizing my own limitations in knowledge, and having that revealed,” he said. “I’ve had this happen on more than one occasion… As uncomfortable as it is, I also welcome it.”In our revealing interview Chauncey shares what he learned from his “chats in a park” project. We hear two audio extracts from his nuanced conversations— one with an outspoken conservative who challenged Chauncey on his views of drop boxes during elections, and another with a recent immigrant from Ecuador who explained what diversity meant to him and his family.Chauncey Williams lives in Colorado where he is involved with the Southern Front Range and Denver Alliances. This year, he helped launch a "Share Your Story" event to learn how others came to their views on specific political topics and on politics, generally. He is a member of Braver Angels Denver Alliance.“How Do We Fix It?” reports on the people, projects and ideas of Braver Angels, the cross-partisan citizen's movement that brings red, blue, and other Americans together in a working alliance. Braver Angels is building new ways for Americans to talk to one another, and act as courageous citizens. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More than at any time in our nation’s history, news coverage of politics and public events is dominated by national media, but many of the solutions to Americans toxic partisan divides are to be found at the local level.In this episode we hear from Steve Saltwick, the inaugural Senior Fellow of Braver Angels, and founding conservative co-chair of the Braver Angels Central Texas Alliance. Steve is one of the leading lights of Citizen-Led Solutions, a new Braver Angels nationwide initiative that equips communities across the country to find common ground through building trust and solving contentious issues. Citizens of many different backgrounds and opinions are directly involved. “It’s incredible when someone feels they’ve been heard,” Steve tells us. “A whole lot of people are talking at people. There’s not enough people talking with people about solving our problems.”Citizen-Led Solutions helps build civic muscle through action instead of outrage. “We’re not battling over one side vanquishing the other. It’s setting a norm of working together to solve problems our nation is facing,” he says.Steve is a neuroscientist who studies the human brain especially as it relates to artificial intelligence. He brings those skills to his work as a volunteer for Braver Angels.In this episode, we discuss two examples of Citizen-Led Solutions— in Newfield, New York, and Nashville, Tennessee. We also examine specific techniques used by Citizen-Led Solutions.“There’s a personal angle to this, a community angle, and a national angle,” says Steve.Learn more about Braver Angels here.Listen to our "How Do We Fix It?" podcasts about Braver Angels here.Braver Angels is America’s biggest cross-partisan, volunteer-led movement to bridge toxic political divides. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many people say Thanksgiving is their favorite holiday: No cards to be sent. No presents to be purchased. A pause with family and close friends before the year-end holiday rush. Thanksgiving is about gratitude, but it can also be a time of anxiety, and even dread. What do you say to family members, friends and neighbors who vote for a candidate or political party you despise? How do you react when they launch into a rant or say something that you find offensive? We share tips about how to disagree better with those you love.Our guest is Braver Angels National Advisor Mónica Guzmán, author of the book “I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times”. Móni is the liberal leaning, loving daughter of conservative parents. She’s had a lot of personal experience of connecting with people not like her. We hear several examples in this episode.Despite rigid political polarization among elites, everyday Americans may have much more in common than many of us believe. A new Gallup poll finds that more than four-in-five adults endorse compromise and reject political violence. Research for More In Common and other groups found that people have a distorted understanding of those on the other side of the political aisle.One-on-one and in-person conversations are the best way for us to overcome polarization in our personal lives, says Mónica. "The only context where we have our full arsenal of communication tools available is the in-person conversation."In our interview, Móni also shares valuable tips about how to listen with curiosity, lean into disagreements and turn them away from awkwardness and misunderstandings.Learn more about how to have better conversations with friends and loved ones who see the world differently than you do here at the Braver Angels website.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just over three months into his new role as leader of Braver Angels, we hear from CEO Maury Giles about his hopes, plans and goals for America's largest volunteer-led movement working to bridge partisan divides and disagree better for the common good.America has lost much of its civic muscle, and it's time to get it back, Maury tells our host, Richard Davies. Rising polarization, declining trust in public institutions and the media, the spread of misinformation, the longest-ever government shutdown, and recent political violence are all signs that something is deeply wrong with our public square."We're trying to help people understand first and foremost that the choice you have to make is that of personal agency: To say am I going to act or react?,” Maury says."In this country we all have the ability to express a point of view and to try to work to solve things, and we don't have to rely on our elected officials to do that. But we’ve lost sight of our civic muscle.”Maury Giles came to Braver Angels after a career in journalism, politics, market research, communications strategy, experience design, and business development. Richard asked him about the challenges and opportunities he faces as a bridge builder at a difficult time.We hear about the case for citizen-led solutions, and why the true remedy to our civic challenges isn’t reaction, but action, with neighbors working with their neighbors across divisions and mistrust. Over the past sixteen months, “How Do We Fix It?” has published more than twenty episodes about the people, projects and ideas of Braver Angels. Find them at our website. Like and subscribe to our shows on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about Maury’s work and Braver Angels’ mission here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.