In a season of extreme polarization, can people from different sides sit at the same table and listen to both sides?

Yes, there still can be polite political discussions in these polarized times, even in Greenfield. The national Braver Angels organization was formed just after the 2016 election in a small town in Indiana, with conservatives (Reds) and liberals (Blues) getting together to politely and respectfully discussing political issues. The Braver Angels now has over 12,000 members with groups (alliances) in every state. The goal of the Braver Angels (braverangels.org) is to unite Reds and Blues together in a working alliance to depolarize America.

The national Braver Angels has weekly Zoom meetings to discuss items. These meetings can have anywhere from 100 to over 1,000 people from all different ages, races, and places across the country. Non-members are welcome. Just go to the website and register for the event.

Locally, there were Braver Angels workshops in Greenfield in October 2018 and again in May 2019 to introduce people to the Braver Angels. (Ref: The Greenfield Recorder articles Oct. 29, 2018 and June, 3, 2019.) After the 2019 workshop, a group decided to form our own Braver Angels Greenfield Alliance.

The goal of Braver Angels is to try to understand the other side’s views, even if we do not agree with them. Also we aspire to look for common ground and a way to work together to solve issues. The best way to solve issues is to understand both sides and discuss them together — something that Congress is presently incapable of doing.

The Greenfield Alliance of approximately 20 members meets monthly to discuss political issues such as Climate Change, Immigration, Impeachment, What is Good in America, the 2020 Election Important Issues, Ensuring a Fair 2020 Election, News Bias, Prison Reform and Defunding the Police. At the end of each meeting, we seek to summarize the common ground that we can agree to.

Some of the Common Ground found by both the Reds and Blues included:

(1) 2020 Election Issues — in 2019 both sides had the same top four  important issues (deficit, immigration, climate change, fair elections), just the sequence of priorities were different;

(2) Climate Change — both sides were concerned about the environment, just differed on how to address it and at what cost;

(3) Immigration — both sides agree that the DACA kids who have been in the United States for approximately 20 years, without a criminal record, should be granted citizenship immediately;

(4) There are a lot of good things about America, which continues to be a beacon of hope and opportunity. We have to keep looking for the good since we are constantly barraged by the negativity of the media;

(5) Defunding the police — Need change, lots of common ground around need for systemic reform, but there was no support for lawlessness and riots. Reallocate some funds, but you cannot totally defund the police. The consensus view is that the majority of the police are good and need to focus on internal reform.

Some of the Braver Angels Alliance members also do other things together such as: a weekly radio show, tour of the Westover Air Force Base and tour of the Barstow Farm in Hadley, where they convert cow poop methane gas into electricity.

No matter who wins the upcoming election, Braver Angels feels that the country cannot continue with the polarization that presently exists in our country. We believe that we need to restore the trust with each other for the betterment of the country and work together to solve the issues. Braver Angels is trying to “build a house (country) united.” Bottom line is that Braver Angels is dedicated to dismantling the rampant partisanship and legislative gridlock that keeps us a house divided.

Braver Angels is a path to putting us back in touch with what Lincoln called “The better angels of our nature.” It is our deepest hope that in pursuing a less fractious and more collaborative approach, we can help heal our political discourse.

If you are interested in joining the Braver Angel Greenfield Alliance for polite, friendly, and respectful discussions of the political issues of the day, please email one of our co-chairs at Bill.richardson2323@gmail.com. New members, both Reds and Blues, are always welcome. However, in order to keep a balanced group, we strongly request that if you are a Blue, find a Red or vs. versa to join together.

Bill Richardson, co-chair of the Braver Angels Greenfield Alliance, is a resident of Northfield.