We have polarized politics in our nation – it’s one party against the other, and unfortunatley this seems to be bleeding into our private lives and relationships. It’s hard to imagine when politics was less polarizing, but it did happen! Politics used to be less reality TV and more thoughtful, polite, and well yes… more boring (as illustrated in the video below:)
Back in the day, there was a mutual respect present in these conversations that is less common in today’s political arena. A lack of respect is a symptom of this new polarization we see. At least if there were respect, individuals would want to have empathy and try to understand the other person’s perspective and reach consensus. It’s as if consensus building isn’t possible in the public political dialog, even though many of us who work in large organizations know that consensus-building is key for us to get anything done.
Sadly, this polarization has driven up stress levels on both sides of the aisle. It’s impacted many close friends and families with members on the left and the right. In some cases, the impact has been so strong that they can’t talk to each other about anything anymore.
Add to this the post-truth era. It’s now easy to debate — and feel free to ignore — facts, measurements and science. We don’t trust the stories in newspapers, TV, the Internet and other media. What’s true? What’s false? It seems in some discussions that what “you” believe are facts can now become “my” opinions.
How do we reach across the aisle to someone who seems to have different political beliefs than you? And how can you use or not use – facts in your favor? How can we bridge the divides in our families, workplaces and social circles that threaten to drive us into echo chambers even more than we already are?
In this Coffee Break, we’ll be discussing these topics and answering questions like these below:
- What’s a working definition of opinion versus fact and how to use that in your political conversations.
- How do you build a bridge with your friends and family to keep your relationships even though you disagree politically to the point of polarization
- What do you do when someone disagrees with the facts you have heard – but have no facts that you trust to back up their perspectives or opinion
- When walking away and avoiding a political discussion may be the best answer.
- What to do when a conversation becomes a debate about human rights, racism, or religious intolerance
- What to do when extreme views enter a conversation
This is tricky territory and we’ll do our best to be even-handed in the conversation. Please join us live to contribute your ideas and share your challenges, regardless of where on the political spectrum you land! We welcome all viewpoints since this is a topic that affects us all.
We look forward to hearing your thoughts about this topic! We hope you can join the conversation!
