To the editor:

If there is one thing on which most Americans can agree it is that our country is now dangerously divided. We are a diverse people and have always enjoyed a wide range of political opinions; our democracy depends on this. But we have rarely felt so polarized in our views or as threatened by those with opposing views as we are today. It does not have to be this way.

We two — Michelle, a conservative Republican, and Elizabeth, a liberal Democrat — remember when Congress worked across the aisle to hammer out compromise solutions to the nation’s problems. Now Washington is divided into two camps engaged in an undemocratic, all-or-nothing political war, and we citizens, convinced there is no common ground, are afraid to talk about the most pressing issues of the day with anyone not on our side. This divisiveness is contaminating the work place, friendships, even some Thanksgiving dinners.

Thanks to new technologies that feed us news from similarly divided media, we now all reside in information bubbles in which we are rarely exposed to differing versions of events or have reason to question what we are being told. We get the sense that everyone on the other side holds the most extreme positions on every issue — that all Republicans support separating mothers and children at the border and all Democrats support open borders; that all Republicans want to arm teachers and all Democrats want to abolish the 2nd Amendment. Sadly, there is no reason to think that the country's polarization will be changed from above. 

Better Angels is a national, grassroots citizen's group that is responding to this impasse. Its leaders come equally from both sides of the political divide and seek to depolarize our country by bringing together equal numbers of conservatives (Reds) and liberals (Blues) in conversations that humanize the opposition and find common ground. The organization promotes its agenda through small, free, day-long Red/Blue workshops led by trained moderators who insure that everyone is respected and who intercede to stop debate and argument. Instead, they lead the group through a series of structured exercises that explore why we hold the opinions we do, introduce us to opposing understandings, and reveal where our positions actually overlap. 

Better Angels was formed after the 2016 election and has thus far held over a hundred workshops all over the country, with the number growing dramatically by the day. The workshops are seen as small steps in a growing movement to heal the country. Participants consistently find the experience reassuring and transformative. 

We are organizing a Red/Blue workshop in Westport on Saturday, January 5, and are looking for six participants who lean right and six who lean left, as well as 15 observers of either persuasion. Ideally, the group should be as diverse as our town in terms of age, formal education, finances, etc., so that we each benefit from exposure to the widest possible perspectives. If you think you might like to either participate or observe, please get in touch with us. 

You can find out more about Better Angels on their website: http://better-angels.org. And you can get a sense of how the workshops work by watching a recent 10 minute CBS news report: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/better-angels-easing-political-tensions-gun-control-debate/

In the last election, half of Westport voted for President Trump and half for Hillary Clinton, making us a perfect reflection of our country. The political divide is as bitter and deep here as it is anywhere. If we can find a way to talk across the divide and thus reduce it, we will be a model for what can happen anywhere in America, for what must happen everywhere in America, if our democracy is to function again. 

Michelle Orlando and Elizabeth Marcus

Westport

Note: Those leaning right and tending to vote Republican should contact Michelle at morlando@mswalker.com or 508-454-7354.

Those leaning left and tending to vote Democratic should contact Elizabeth at ERM82@aol.com or 617-529-6359. Observers need not reveal their political affiliation and can contact either of us.