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    • What is Braver Angels? The group wants to heal political divisions
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    What is Braver Angels? The group wants to heal political divisions

    Umito Posted on

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    Across the country during this election period, political polarization was front and center in the streets, during elections, on conference stages and in the media.

    This week, in a Cincinnati neighborhood, conservative and liberal voters gathered in a meeting room to develop plans for depolarization.

    There were soft voices and thoughtful nods instead of shouted insults and raised fists. There were goals on billboards and promises on Post-it notes instead of signs for Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris.

    After 90 minutes, participants in Cincinnati’s first post-election meeting Braver angels left with lists of what concerns them, what gives them hope and what they – whether blue, red or purple, as the group calls them – can do to combat polarization .

    “We are not going to move forward as a country until we commit to this,” the group’s leader, Robyn Brands, told them.

    Speak your truth fully, without fear

    David Lappfrom South Lebanon, co-founded Braver Angels in 2016, three weeks after Donald Trump won the presidency over Hillary Clinton. Someone had just dumped a pile of manure at the front door of the Warren County Democratic Party offices, repeating the 2012 stunt.

    Originally called Better Angels – a lawsuit forced the group to drop the famous quote from Abraham Lincoln in 2020, the group hosted a weekend retreat for 10 Trump voters and 10 Clinton supporters to deepen the deep divide between them.

    “We knew we wanted to create an organization to combat polarization,” Lapp said.

    The group quickly took off, now consisting of 110 chapters (called alliances) that have hosted more than 4,500 events for 57,000 participants.

    Its goal: to train volunteers to alleviate partisan divisions “for the good of our democratic republic,” find alternatives to “toxic politics” and encourage political actors from both parties to work together.

    “The Braver Angels way: we express our views freely and fully, without fear,” its website says.

    Lapp does his part as paid director of the Braver Angels Citizens Commission on Immigration. Over the next two years, it will bring together experts to draft policy recommendations and share them with Congress.

    Concerns and hopes inform commitments

    Tuesday, at Crossroads Church in Cincinnati’s Oakley neighborhood, Lapp was one of seven entertainers. Thirty people – newcomers, veterans – came to talk politics. Two-thirds were women, most were white and over 50 years old.

    Fueled by free coffee and, for some, turmoil over Trump’s election, the Braver Angels reported:

    • Post-election concerns about the possibility of violence, loss of government checks and balances, escalation of wars, and “a culture of nastiness.”
    • Post-election hopes for lower inflation, bipartisan legislation, First Amendment rights and “that Trump voters’ best dreams will come true and Harris voters’ worst fears will not come true “.

    Most importantly, they are committed to fighting polarization. Here’s what some angels had to say.

    Be kind, curious, respectful

    Andrew Peters, 26, said he would be “kind and curious” when he talked to a family in his Dayton, Ky., neighborhood about the policy choices advertised on their yard signs. “I could guess, but my guess would probably be wrong,” said Peters, whose politics are “red.”

    Peters said Braver Angels equipped him with skills to use in other settings. For example, when a church meeting grew heated, he would turn to questions about tension and postpone the current conversation until a later meeting.

    Hillel Gray, a recently retired member of the University of Miami religion faculty, also applies Braver Angels’ approaches to other engagements. He taught students to engage with supporters of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas – known for controversial hate speech against Jews, Muslims, atheists and members of the LGBTQ community – with empathy and without judgment. He plans to hold a workshop at his synagogue to discuss differences of opinion. He negotiates with his fellow Wikipedia editors to keep the entries neutral.

    Even among family and friends, the Amberley Village resident said he tries to be impartial and asks them to “watch how you talk about ‘the enemy’.”

    Robin Shabazz, a 59-year-old “blue” resident of Forest Park, said her first session with the Braver Angels won’t be her last. She learned that voters have the same concerns no matter who they support. “I’m trying to understand how we can agree on a path forward,” she said.

    Rebecca Johnson, a 58-year-old “blue” voter from Wyoming, said she came to Braver Angels in 2016 “in a world of hurt.” The group taught him how to share his views “in a way that people could hear him” and empowered him to lead workshops for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. “We need to see how we can bring America together again,” she said.

    Chris Heck, a 68-year-old “blue-leaning” resident of Blue Ash, has lessened the polarization in her life by consuming a wider range of news programs and listening to its words. In the past, she might have said, “You’re nice for a Republican.” Now she’ll ask, “What made you vote for Trump?” »

    How to be a braver angel

    At the national levelBraver Angels produces a podcast, offers online courses, organizes workshops, hosts debates and features speakers.

    In Ohio, the USA TODAY Ohio Network began organize Braver Angels workshops after Donald Trump lost his re-election to Joe Biden in 2020. The organization then had about 38,000 participants across the country.

    In Cincinnati, the local section hosts large group sessions at Crossroads once a month (the next meetings are December 9 and January 13), with smaller Coffee & Conversation meetings in between.

    Umito
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