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What groups focused on bridging can do now that the election's over
Nov 17 2020
Godwin is the founder and CEO of the Listen First Project and manages the affiliated National Conversation Project, a coalition seeking to limit the nation's partisan and social discord by encouraging more talk among people with differing views.
<p>Our country is reeling from a year of viral pandemic, racial reckoning, economic insecurity and political warfare. It can be hard to see the path forward through the fog. This is true for individuals, organizations and coalitions seeking to find our footing and best serve our fellow Americans through this fraught moment in our nation's history. </p>
<p>There are nearly 350 organizations across 37 states in the Listen First Coalition, which is working to mend our frayed social fabric by building relationships and bridging divides. It includes national, state and local nonprofits, schools, libraries, activist groups, media, and businesses — and two years ago spawned the National Conversation Project.</p>
<p>We've increasingly sought to work together, joining forces to reach farther and achieve an impact greater than any one of us could alone. Over the course of this tumultuous election year, we rallied as one behind the <a href="https://weaving.us/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Weaving Community</a> campaign. It launched in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic and has now reached more than 15 million, inspiring Americans of all stripes to start or deepen relationships in their communities. </p>
<p>We're now reflecting together on what we've experienced, what we've learned and the path forward. </p>
<p>While this month's election was not a resounding rebuke of division, it did result in the election of a new president who stubbornly centered his campaign on a message of unity. </p><p><p style="text-align: center;" id="sufn"><a style="font-weight: bold;margin:40px auto;font-size:2rem" href="https://thefulcrum.us/st/newsletters">Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter </a></p></p><p>In declaring victory Saturday night, Joe Biden pledged "to be a president who seeks not to divide, but to unify," and his speech was filled with turns of phrase so familiar to many of our organizations.</p><p>"It's time to put away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature, see each other again, listen to each other again. To make progress, we have to stop treating our opponents as our enemies. They are not our enemies. They're Americans," he said. "Our nation is shaped by the constant battle between our better angels and our darkest impulses, and what presidents say in this battle matters. It's time for our better angels to prevail."</p><p>This approach from the bully pulpit is great to hear and can only help. That said, we're under no illusions regarding the limits of rhetoric to heal our nation. </p><p>The people who do our work believe the ultimate answer is positive social connection, trust and relationships — something only possible with individuals in local communities that choose to heal together. But just as divisive rhetoric can inflame tribal animosities, increasing our distance from one another, unifying rhetoric can inspire those who are inclined and persuadable to open their eyes to and lean toward the other for a higher common purpose. </p>
<p><div class="x12"><div class="htlad-Desktop_Content_Banner"></div></div></p><p>The necessary step from inspiration to action is where the many heroes of our movement are well positioned to serve.</p>
<p>While ushering in a hopeful new tone from the White House, this election also put a sobering truth in stark relief. We are — in ideology, culture, geography, and identity — two Americas, more evenly matched than expected and not so easily caricatured. The fault lines of 2016 deepened and widened in 2020 with no softening in sight. The previous election and the last four years were not an aberration but a confirmed reflection of the gulf in America. </p>
<p>Most of us are more sympathetic to one side of this gulf than the other, but that doesn't change the reality facing our mission. Many are experiencing pain, threat and fear — and are having a very human reaction to all that. Sadly, it's in our nature to channel those emotions into blame and grievance toward the other. Whatever our views of the relative merits of various grievances, people across the political spectrum feel under attack. The resulting defensive posture is not highly conducive to connection across differences. </p>
<p>So where does this reality leave us?</p>
<p>We face gargantuan, humbling obstacles. Our best efforts and messages will have limited effect in convincing those currently invested in tribal warfare to change their emotion-driven approach. But we are perfectly equipped to inspire and engage those open to or already seeking a different way — a way out of the tribal doom loop for themselves, their communities and their country. </p>
<p>Surveys and anecdotal experience tell us that as the environment gets darker, more people look for light. Our coalition is here to magnify and manifest the light. </p>
<p>Everybody doing this work has experienced a moment when our tribal interests were surpassed by concern for the health of the collective — for the fabric of our society. While ready and waiting for each person to have such a moment, we're seeking to inspire and accelerate such revelations.</p>
<p>We can open eyes to the possibility of transforming a rising tide of rancor, deepening division and increasing isolation into a wave of respect, connection and belonging.</p>
<p>We can equip Americans with foundational skills and opportunities to weave a stronger social fabric and build bridges across our differences so Americans of all stripes can come together and solve our shared challenges. In this, we translate desire and intention into productive, multiplying action. </p>
<p>If our society is on a downward spiral into a dark hole, our groups are throwing down the rope ladders of rescue.</p>
<p>Mending the frayed fabric of America with trust and empathy won't magically happen. It will be fueled by visionaries, leaders, experts, organizers, methods and mass offerings of skills and opportunities. </p><div></div><p>We invite all Americans looking for a way out of tribalism, animosity and mistrust to join us. We're here for you. </p>
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National Conversation Project wants to keep you engaged during pandemic
Mar 20 2020
As social distancing forces more isolation on an already fractured nation, one of the leading organizations behind civil dialogue is developing programming to keep people connected.
The National Conversation Project, a coalition of more than 300 organizations that develops virtual and in-person programming to help bridge divides through listening and sharing, launched the #WeavingCommunities effort this week to help people keep communicating during the coronavirus shutdown.
<p>"Americans often rise to common challenges like this with kindness, love, mutual support, and shared responsibility to endure together," writes Pearce Godwin, executive director of the National Conversation Project. "We need community now more than ever. Although our nation's social fabric is badly frayed by distance and division, together we can weave a strong social fabric and emerge healthy and united."</p>
<p>The organization encourages people to:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Follow the #WeavingCommunity hashtag and share their own stories.</li><li>Join or host a phone call or join a virtual conversation.</li><li>Perform acts of kindness.</li></ul>The organization is offering <a href="https://weaving2020.org/" target="_blank">prompts to get you started</a><p>.</p>
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Race and Ethnicity - Living Room Conversations
Time to boost conversations that create connections
Jun 20 2019
Blades is co-founder of Living Room Conversations, which organizes gatherings designed to increase understanding and reveal common ground.
Thought experiment: What if all the leaders in Washington decided tomorrow that climate change was the No. 1 issue to address? Evidence suggests this would not be as helpful as many people think. Consider health care, a No. 1 issue for decades. How does the U.S. health care system stack up? It is the most expensive in the world per capita and it isn't even in the top 10 in terms of outcomes. The fact is, importance isn't the determining variable for achieving success. We need to be able to work together.
Weaving the fabric of our democracy locally and nationally is a massive challenge. The people behind Living Room Conversations are meeting that challenge by offering an open-source project that can be used by mobile users at the beach as easily as in a living room or library.
Sometimes we worry that our name may confuse people. Living Room Conversations aren't limited by location, geography or time zone. They are happening every day in churches, libraries, schools, book stores, city community centers and virtual conference spaces. These six-person, structured conversations are designed to be self-directed, easily accessible, and welcoming to a broad array of perspectives. The structure includes conversation agreements that support comfort and safety.
<p>The <em>intent</em> is to make it possible for 10,000 Living Room Conversations to happen in a weekend. The <em>purpose</em> is to help people better understand each other, build relationships and, when possible, find common ground for agency to act together for the good of the community, the nation and the world.</p><p>Initially envisioned in 2010 as two friends with different viewpoints each inviting two friends for a conversation about a political issue, this vision has evolved with the changing dynamics of our times. We share <a href="https://www.livingroomconversations.org/topics/#topicsatozlist" target="_blank">over 80 conversation guides</a>, reviewed by our diverse team of partners, that offer an opportunity to talk about:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Shared aspirations. American Creed; Politically Correct and Healthy Conversations.</li><li>Cultural conversations. American Culture: Melting pot or salad bowl or something else?; Women, Leadership and Power</li><li>Local concerns. Affordable Housing; Homelessness; Police-Community Relations</li><li>Faith community concerns. Politics in Faith Communitie;, Religious Freedom and Non-discrimination</li><li>National concerns. Free Speech; Health Care; Opioid Addiction</li><li>Democratic structure conversations. Money in Politics;<span style="background-color: initial;"> Ranked Choice Voting; </span><span style="background-color: initial;">Gerrymandering.</span></li><li>Reflective conversations. Forgiveness; The Search for Purpose; Empathy; Digital Dialog.</li><li><span style="background-color: initial;">Hot topics. Race and Ethnicity; Guns and Responsibility; Immigration; Climate Change.</span></li></ul><p>These conversations provide a wonderful opportunity to listen deeply to people we don't necessarily agree with. Many participants have discovered that these conversations improve their listening skills, and Living Room Conversations have become a monthly practice in numerous communities.</p><p>The sad thing is, many people are no longer comfortable inviting a friend or neighbor with a different viewpoint to co-host a conversation. We are working to overcome this obstacle by leveraging our connections to support faith communities, cities and schools talking online across the country. We will soon be able to offer a new technology, <a href="https://www.mismatch.org/" target="_blank">Mismatch</a>, to help folks find a political other.</p><p><div class="x12"><div class="htlad-Desktop_Content_Banner"></div></div></p><p>Living Room Conversations works with other bridge-building organizations around the country. What better way to scale! <a data-linked-post="2638671873" href="https://thefulcrum.us/all-sides" target="_blank">AllSides</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638671803" href="https://thefulcrum.us/the-village-square" target="_blank">Village Square</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638674810" href="https://thefulcrum.us/listen-first-project" target="_blank">Listen First</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638673176" href="https://thefulcrum.us/bridge-alliance" target="_blank">Bridge Alliance</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638673065" href="https://thefulcrum.us/better-angels" target="_blank">Better Angels</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638702454" href="https://thefulcrum.us/national-conversation-project" target="_blank">National Conversation Project</a>, <a data-linked-post="2638674439" href="https://thefulcrum.us/fairvote" target="_blank">FairVote</a> and <a data-linked-post="2638671894" href="https://thefulcrum.us/american-indivisible" target="_blank">American Indivisible</a> are our partners in this work. We are better together!</p><p>It appears that people think that they can win political arguments – that they can change someone's mind. Yet how many of us remember seeing that happen? People are much more likely to dig in or stop talking when they argue. One of my favorite conservative friends is a hypnotist. We talk about people being in a political trance. Once the talking points come out, it is pretty clear that the trance has taken hold and nobody is changing their mind about anything. The unexpectedly amazing thing is that listening is so much more powerful than attempts to persuade. When we hear someone's experience of an issue, we tend to soften and even begin to care about what is important to our friends. That caring is a meaningful starting point.</p><p>We need everyone's best ideas in the room. We need to be agile, learning from what we try and adapting to find the best way forward. This agility and adaptation doesn't happen when distrust reigns and fighting is the primary engagement form.</p><p>The bottom line is that we need to talk and we need to listen. We need to care about each other and to respect each other's perspectives. When we learn to do this, we just might begin to get on the path to addressing the big issues that we need to solve – together. <br></p>
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National Conversation Project
Jun 05 2019
Building on the tremendous success of the first National Week of Conversation and the momentum it generated, we've launched an ongoing National Conversation Project to mend the frayed fabric of America by bridging divides one conversation at a time. National Conversation Project—an overarching collaborative platform powered by 175+ organizations—is designed to reach farther and impact greater than any one organization by aggregating, aligning, and amplifying the many conversation efforts already underway while welcoming more Americans into conversations. National Conversation Project promotes National Weeks of Conversation, #ListenFirst Fridays, and any conversation inviting people to revitalize America together.
