The Braver Angels Podcast

Latest Episodes:

A Trump Supporter Interviews a Biden Supporter Sep 13, 2022

Show notes

This week we put a Biden supporter in the hot seat. Wilk Wilkinson, a conservative Republican, interviews Jordan Carmon, a staunch Biden supporter, on everything from Hunter Biden to January 6th — showing us what's possible when we bring good faith to our richest, most passionate disagreements. Send us your feedback at media@braverangels.org.

A Catholic, a Jew, and a Protestant Walk Into a Bridge-Building Movement | Eduardo Andino & Randy Lioz with April Lawson Aug 29, 2022

Show notes

From Braver Seders to the Catholic belief that we need not fear the truth, three Braver Angels leaders talk about how their respective religious traditions inspire their bridge-building work. They explore the spiritual side of Braver Angels, and how we can learn from the insights of each particular tradition.

FB (@randy.lioz) and Twitter (@randylioz)

A Trump Republican on the FBI's Mar-a-Lago Raid Aug 23, 2022

Show notes

Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor is a progressive Democrat who previously worked for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Wilk Wilkinson is a Trump supporter who helps lead Braver Angels' efforts to engage working class Americans. In this episode of the podcast, Ciaran and Wilk come together to discuss the investigations into former President Trump's conduct, why conservatives are so angry about the FBI's raid of his residence at Mar-a-Lago, and what the "rule of law" means in a country this polarized.

Generosity in America: 1 Working Person's View of Politics & Life | Annette Ritter with April Lawson Kornfield Jul 25, 2022

Show notes

April Lawson Kornfield interviews Annette Ritter about what it means to be working class in America, how she sees regular people engaging politics, and how her own journey through trauma and addiction led her to become an addiction recovery counselor. Annette shares openly and with great insight about what it will take to bring people—all people—together to bridge the divide.

Annette is an addictions counselor trainee, a graduate of Maryland's Allegheny College, and a We the People's Project leader at Braver Angels. She lives with her husband, three cats, and a red slider turtle in beautiful western Maryland.

Twitter: @braverangels, @AprilALawson

Keeping the Faith | John Wood Jr., Monica Guzman, April Lawson Kornfield, & Ciaran O'Connor Jul 18, 2022

Show notes

At a time of deepening polarization and social division, it's easy to become discouraged, disillusioned, and depressed. In this special roundtable episode, Braver Angels leaders Ciaran O'Connor, John Wood Jr., April Lawson Kornfield, and Monica Guzman come together to discuss how they keep the faith in our work and in each other. The group also discusses the recent abortion decision by the Supreme Court and what it means for Braver Angels' efforts to bridge the divide.

Help us build a house united by supporting our work: www.braverangels.org/support-us

Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @AprilALawson, @JohnRWoodJr, @moniguzman

Braving the Gun Divide | Mark Beckwith & Wilk Wilkinson with Ciaran O'Connor Jul 05, 2022

Show notes

As the U.S. Congress and the Supreme Court weigh in on gun rights and gun safety, Americans remain bitterly divided on the right to bear arms. Is it possible to bridge this divide on the level of shared values? What can we learn from one another's lived experiences that influence our thoughts and feelings about deadly weapons? What are the tradeoffs between gun rights and public health, and how do we navigate them as fellow Americans? Ciaran O'Connor convenes Mark Beckwith, a longtime gun safety activist, and Wilk Wilkinson, a strong gun rights proponent, for a passionate, emotional conversation. Mark and Wilk don't see eye to eye, but they do see each others' hearts. This discussion is a testament to what's possible when we speak fully, freely, and without fear—with charity for all and malice toward none. Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor

A Jalapeño a Day: What America Can Learn From Bridging in the Hispanic Community | Monica Guzman & Daniel Acosta-Rivas with April Lawson Kornfield Jun 21, 2022

Show notes

Monica Guzmán and Daniel Acosta-Rivas share intimate stories about growing up in their respective Hispanic contexts and the diversity of the Hispanic world. They offer riveting insights on why the Hispanic community is underrepresented in organizations like Braver Angels and why Venezuela's population may, shockingly, be less divided than America's, illustrating the unique power of its approach to bridge-building.

Daniel, originally from Venezuela, currently lives in Washington, D.C. and works for Stand Together. He is a recent graduate of American University, where he founded the Students for Free Expression chapter. Mónica Guzmán is the director of digital & storytelling at Braver Angels and the author of the bestseller I Never Thought of It That Way.

Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @AprilALawson

Gen-Z & the New Center | Manu Meel with John Wood Jr. Jun 15, 2022

Show notes

Manu Meel and the students of the cross-partisan campus group BridgeUSA are the vanguard of the civic bridge-building movement nationwide.

What characterizes the 20-year-olds who are working across the divide to save American democracy, and what is the theory of change that defines the bridging/depolarization movement writ large? Does this work imply a centrism in defense of the status quo? Or is it an effort to establish a new type of political "center" that's not about political ideology at all? BridgeUSA co-founder and CEO Manu Meel tackles all of this and more with Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood Jr.

Learn more about BridgeUSA's work at www.bridgeusa.org, and follow them on Instagram at @BridgeUSA_.

Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @manumeel1, @BridgeUSA_

How Braver Angels Began, Part 2 | David Blankenhorn, Bill Doherty, & David Lapp Jun 06, 2022

Show notes

In the year that followed the first Braver Angels workshop in December 2016, Braver Angels went from an experiment with a handful of citizens in small-town Ohio to a growing national movement.

In this second part of "How Braver Angels Began," the co-founders of Braver Angels (David Blankenhorn, Bill Doherty, and David Lapp) narrate how Braver Angels found itself on a three-week bus tour, navigating flag controversies, and following the lead of citizens everywhere in building what is now the nation's largest grassroots organization working for depolarization.

Watch part 1 of this conversation here: https://youtu.be/dzNDUowRedw

Learn more and support our mission: braverangels.org/support-us

Twitter: @braverangels, @blankenhorn3, @davidlappoh

What's It Like To Be Gen Z in Today's Climate? Two Zoomers Discuss | Isaac Humrich & Ope Tukuru with April Lawson Kornfield May 23, 2022

Show notes

April Lawson Kornfield hosts two thoughtful young people—Zoomers, as they're sometimes called—for a conversation about depolarization, campus culture, and what it would take to bring more youth into the bridge-building movement. Isaac Humrich is a rising sophomore at Arizona State University and the incoming president of the Arizona State College Republicans. Ope Tukuru, a recent graduate of the University at Albany, just finished his internship with the media team at Braver Angels.

The guests offer surprising insights about friendship, which stereotypes about their generation are unfair and which ones hit the mark, and how it feels to be coming into adulthood amidst a pandemic, intense social justice movements, and a political world that feels increasingly unstable.

Twitter: @braverangels, @AprilALawson, @IsaacHumrich