Braver Angels Oregon

If you are in the Roseburg area, don't miss this in-person workshop on Skills for Disagreeing Better. Mark your calendar for Thursday, August 22nd from 2:30 - 5 and sign up today!

Skills for Disagreeing Better (OR - Oregon Statewide Alliance) Seeing where we differ and where we share common ground

Mónica talks with David McRaney, a leading voice on the science of persuasion, about how minds change — or don’t! — and why.

How can I change their mind? Whether it was about foreign policy, the economy, or the best route to the grocery store, chances are you have changed your mind about something. What happens in your brain when you do, and what does that teach us about how we can change someone else’s mind on a political issue? Mónica talks with...

Listen in tomorrow at 8 am to hear Elizabeth and I chat about Braver Angels on Willamette Wake Up radio!!

Thursday on Willamette Wake Up : Braver Angels is an organization made up of "conservative" and "progressive" Americans. Its mission is to bring us together to bridge the partisan divide through respectful dialogue. Elizabeth Christensen and Laura Kramer, from the Oregon alliance, explain what's happening in our state and how to participate in the American Hope Campaign. Tune in to 100.7/88.5 FM at 8AM. For other ways to listen in real time or on demand, see kmuz.org.

While the "7 Habits of Highly Effective People" isn't specifically about reducing polarization, it is a great guide to working effectively with others (and living a life consistent with your values). This is one of the most influential books I've ever read and I highly recommend it.

Here's Habit #5:

Mark your calendar for Saturday, 8/17 at 11 am for an online workshop: Depolarizing Within for Schools and Communities.

This workshop uses many school-related examples, including: social-emotional learning, book banning, changing long time classic books with modern language, mobile phone use in schools, as well as the rights of parents in public schools. However, this workshop is also relevant for non-school communities -- such as communities of worship, social clubs, or educational institutions.

In this workshop you will learn skills and practice them. You’ll learn to:
*Become aware of your own “inner polarizer”
*Disagree with others without demonizing, dismissing, or stereotyping them
*Speak in ways others will want to hear
*Affirm the importance of building relationships
*Feel safe practicing your new skills

Depolarizing Within (BA National - Workshops) Become aware of your “inner polarizer” and learn to have respectful conversations

A student at Arizona State is doing a research project on people’s perceptions of current events. He is trying to understand the levels of affective polarization in America. If you have 15 minutes, take some time to fill out his survey!

| QuestionPro Survey QuestionPro Survey

Braver Angels was featured in a short segment on CBS Saturday Morning recently. Love seeing our work in the mainstream media!!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/162kOXEU2uUdVO3EGzpMXjJjsng_Yq0u0/view

If you are in the Portland area, join us for Pie and Depolarization next Wednesday (8/14) from 4-6 pm at the Bipartisan Cafe.

This is a casual event where you will get to meet some of your fellow local Braver Angels. The format changes month to month, but usually involves small group or individual discussions, while supporting our host, Bipartisan Café, with your patronage. No registration needed, just show up!

Can't make it this month? Mark your calendar for the second Wednesday of every month and join us when you can.

About Bipartisan Cafe | Portland, Ore. Coffee House Learn more about Bipartisan Cafe in Portland, Oregon, including history, mission, the art on the walls. hosting an event, the coffee they serve, and more.

If you're in the Eugene area on Tuesday (8/13) from 6-8 pm join Talking Politics in person at Oakshire Public House.

This meet-up is for folks who want to understand what divides us. This is a get-together for the open-minded. Pull up a chair and let’s have some respectful and civil discourse about what led you to believe what you believe and vote for what you vote for. Maybe we can come to some common ground about what we want moving forward, and make some friends in the process.

Can't make it this month, mark your calendar for the 2nd Tuesday of every month and join us next time!

Public House - Oakshire Brewing Welcome What's On What's to eat? Welcome Visit Oakshire Our Public House is located in the Whiteaker neighborhood of Eugene — an eccentric, artistically inspired part of the city. The Pub features our Watershed Market, which houses a vast array of beer-to-go in cans and bottles, as well as our one...

Check out our Braver Network partner Bridge USA. They are teaching college and high school students how to fight against political division. Share this with some young people in your life.

BridgeUSA – Youth movement to fight political division. Start Today 87% of people are tired of political division. 60% of young people are worried about democracy in the U.S. We’re building a youth movement to bring the country together. Full Name* First Last Email* I am a...* Student Faculty / Admin Non-Student PhoneThis field is for validation purpos...

Have you listened to the latest podcast episode yet?

Text “brave” to 206-926-9955 to get text updates when a new episode is out.

How to keep speech free (and fun?) on campus Free speech - Free people - Free food. That was a tagline for a cross-partisan discussion forum Sam Rechek started as a freshman at the University of South Florida. In this episode, Sam shares what he learned from those tough weekly conversations, like the importance of humor and humility, and makin...

Words of wisdom from Monica

Mark your calendar for Saturday, August 10th from 11-12:30 for an online workshop on Skills for Disagreeing Better. The goals for this workshop include:
*More understanding of the values and concerns of people who differ from you politically
*Better skills for listening in a way so that the other person feels heard
*Better skills for sharing viewpoints in a way the other person might hear -- even if they disagree

Skills for Disagreeing Better (BA National - Workshops) Seeing where we differ and where we share common ground

Our Governor's are working towards more productive politics with their Disagree Better initiative. I love the promotional videos they have made with red/blue pairs. You can find more on their Disagree Better YouTube page.

#DisagreeBetter - Being Good Neighbors Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and Missouri Governor Mike Parson on their commitment to disagreeing better. Learn more: https://www.nga.org/disagree-better/

Ever wonder how the news article you are reading is biased? Try out AllSides Bias Checker!

AllSides Bias Checker™ AllSides Bias Checker is an on-demand solution providing instant bias ratings and analysis for any news article.

In-Person workshop in St Helens!!

Mark your calendar for Tuesday, August 6th at 5:30 pm for a 1 hour workshop on "Navigating Difficult Conversations". Get some information on depolarizing, a chance to practice and community discussion.

Navigating Difficult Conversations - a mini BA experience and introduction Community meeting with information & experience about depolarization

Check out this podcast featuring Jessie and Luke who represented Braver Angels just outside the Republican National Convention Arena.

#412 Braver Angels at The Republican Convention: Jessie Mannisto and Luke Nathan Phillips — How Do We Fix It? This is our first in a series of new reports on the work, people and projects of Braver Angels — the largest volunteer-led group in the bridging community. The show was recorded a few days after the assassination attempt against Donald Trump. Our guests are Jessie Mannisto and Luke Nathan Philli

In-Person workshop in SW Portland!!

Mark your calendar for Sunday, August 4th at 1pm for a 1 hour workshop on "Navigating Difficult Conversations". This session serves as both an introduction to Braver Angels, as well as a “mini-experience” of what happens in our longer experiences. During the session, the audience is presented with the problem of polarization and learns how Braver Angels workshops are structured to address this problem. You then get to practice an essential skill in difficult conversation.

Navigating Difficult Conversations (OR - State/West Hills Friends Meeting) Navigating Difficult Conversations

Engage in the American Hope Campaign! Sign up to stay informed on the Immigration Common Ground workshops that will be occurring over the next year or so.

Express Interest Common Ground Attend a Common Ground Workshop on Immigration We've proven we can do it with Election Integrity, and over the next 12 months we'll be tacking

Do you have a friend that is interested in Braver Angels, but on the fence about becoming a member? Offer them a free membership! bit.ly/3RHvwDP

Share this message and invite your friends to join Braver Angels today! This 6 minute video with highlights from the convention is a great summary of our work and the hope we have for the future. Our movement is growing and making a difference!!

Braver Angels - Be Part of The Solution Join us at https://braverangels.org

Come to the Washington County Fair this weekend (July 26-28) and give us your Spin on the Issues!
*Prize Wheel of Issues - every spin wins a prize and an opportunity to give us your take on 1 of 8 issues
*Mark your Rural, Urban, Suburban, or Small Town position on those 8 issues, and learn a new, Braver Angels way of thinking about them.
*Write your issue and/or solutions on our big sheets.
*Connect with a local alliance AND with the Oregon Rural/Urban Project.
*We need YOUR voice to bridge the divide!

Step 1 of the American Hope campaign is to sign the petition demanding party leadership. Can you please sign it today?

Resolved: Our Political Leaders Shall Take Responsibility for Polarization

Summary: We can fix our destructive political divisiveness starting with existing solutions that party leaders, elected officials, and candidates aren’t talking about. These leaders can set the expectation that elected officials work together, build relationships, and bring our communities together, and that candidates clash about ideas and not personal attacks and stereotypes. Sign the petition to demand that our parties accept responsibility for detoxifying politics by adopting a joint “House United Plank” for all party platforms or by mutually adopting any other written agreement this campaign season to turn the page on endless fighting and dysfunction. We further demand that candidates and elected officials express their views about polarization this year as a vitally important issue facing the nation and our communities.

A Call for Party Leaders To Help Detoxify Our Politics A Demand for Party Leadership Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesPolitical leaders should be working together to

Mark your calendar for Sunday, 7/28 at 4pm to join the Berkeley/Oakland/San Francisco Braver Angels Alliance for a powerful discussion. On Zoom, in breakout rooms, we will explore the relationship between our growing Administrative State and its impact on our democracy.

Even if you can't attend, you may find this background information about the administrative state useful. https://ballotpedia.org/Administrative_state

Is the Administrative State a Threat to our Democracy (Berkeley/Oakland/SF) Online discussion - Administrative State and its impact on democracy.

I was browsing the Braver Angels website and found this recent article about how differences in prioritizing our values can be misunderstood for not having values. Check it out!

What do they value? What if we were willing to see the values underneath our opponents' political positions?

Check out our National Ambassador John Wood, Jr's inspiring speech at the closing plenary session of the convention. It starts at about 1:56:00 and lasts about 6 minutes.

"Because these people hoped, because they believed, the American Dream endured for generations to come. See it in your mind! Believe it! ...We will remember these days as a moment in time when hope was kindled anew."

Braver Angels 2024 National Convention Closing Plenary Join us at https://braverangels.org

If you're near Hood River, consider joining this event!

Depolarizing Within - Braver Angels Depolarizing Within Find a Depolarizing Within Workshop Take the eLearning Course What is a Depolarizing Within Workshop? The Depolarizing Within Workshop

Do have a friend who would like to learn more about Braver Angels? Send them the link to this online event, coming up this Thursday (7/25) at 4 pm.

Crossing the Continental Divide provides participants with an introduction to Braver Angels and an overview of its principles. During this presentation participants will:
*Participate in two brief activities (one taken directly from the Depolarizing Within workshop)
*Watch a video of a Braver Angels' Red/Blue workshop in action
*Gain knowledge about how to have better conversations
*Learn about other Braver Angels' experiences and opportunities

Crossing the Continental Divide (Via Zoom) An introduction to Braver Angels and an overview of its principles.

Join fellow Braver Angels for a national debate on the topic – “Resolved: Abolish the Electoral College.” Online this Thursday (7/25) at 5 pm.

National Debate: Electoral College Should the electoral college be abolished? Join Braver Angels to debate.

Did you know the National Governors Association has been working on a "Disagree Better" initiative since July of 2023? Check out their annual progress report.

#DisagreeBetter - A Year in Review Learn more: https://www.nga.org/disagree-better/