Get Started
The Braver Angels national website and YouTube channel include a wealth of resources to help you learn how to engage in more constructive dialogue with friends, family, and fellow citizens who hold differing political views. To help you decide where to start, we’ve highlighted some great resources and events below.
About Braver Angels
Braver Angels brings works to Americans together to bridge the partisan divide and strengthen our democratic republic—not to change people’s views of issues, but to change their views of each other.
Watch this 4-minute overview of Braver Angels:
Hear founders David Blakenhorn and Bill Doherty talk about Braver Angels:
Listen to Bill Doherty testify to the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress with recommendations on depolarization:
Skills Trainings
One of the most important efforts of Braver Angels is the Skills Trainings program, offered either in-person or via Zoom, for free, and without the need for membership. For members, each training is also available as a self-paced eLearning Course, which can be taken alone or as preparation for the in-person or Zoom-based training (membership is available for as little as $12/year). Follow the links below to learn more about each training and to sign up for an in-person, Zoom-based, or eLearning version.
Skills for Bridging the Divide workshops help you through difficult political conversations with people in your life. Learn how to talk across the divide in a constructive, empathetic way.
Depolarizing Within workshops teach participants to look within and develop strategies for engaging politics without demonizing, and how to constructively intervene in social conversations with like-minded peers.
Families and Politics workshops show participants how to talk about politics with their loved ones in a way that brings us closer together—not farther apart.
Skills for Social Media is an eLearning Course that teaches participants how to share and discuss political viewpoints on social media platforms without contributing to polarization. Available to members and non-members alike, only as an eLearning Course.
Workshops
Braver Angels also runs Workshops, offered either in person or via Zoom, for free, and without the need for membership. Follow the links below to learn more about each workshop and to sign up.
Red-Blue workshops bring together a small, evenly divided group of conservatives and liberals, or “reds” and “blues,” for a series of exercises designed to help participants clarify disagreements, reduce stereotyped thinking, and discover common values.
Common Ground workshops allow participants from Red-Blue workshops to dig deeper into specific issues, recognizing that there is often more that unites us than divides us.
Race Conversations enable participants to talk about race in an inquisitive, non-judgmental way.
Podcasts
The Braver Angels Podcast believes in the value of talking to people—and public figures—you disagree with, even if you find their views foolish, incomprehensible, or detestable. We don’t shy away from sensitive issues or controversy, and we never ask people to moderate their views. But we do ask people to come in good faith and approach our conversations with empathy, respect, and an open mind. The goal is to show America a new way of talking politics—one that you won’t hear at campaign rallies or on cable news—and invite all Americans, regardless of political persuasion, to find the courage to have these difficult conversations in 2020 and beyond.
Sample Podcast: Can We Talk About Abortion?
In a special all-women roundtable edition of our podcast, two Red and two Blue Braver Angels leaders get passionate, personal, and curious about what led them to hold opposing views on one of the toughest political dilemmas in America: abortion. How do voices on the left and right strengthen or weaken our country’s grasp of what’s at stake? And how do these women respond to the heartfelt, challenging questions they ask each other across the divide about legality, morality, freedom, and even murder? Featuring April Kornfield (director of debates), Sage Snider (director emeritus of cultural engagement), Alma Cook (co-chair of the music team), and Mónica Guzmán (director of digital and storytelling). Also in this episode: the women share tributes to mothers, a mother-in-law, and—in a surprising twist—their undying love for Thanksgiving mashed potatoes.
Debates
If you haven’t seen a Braver Angel debate, get ready for a new experience. Our special parliamentary format encourages everyone to speak or ask questions, insures civility in disagreement, and strives for learning and better understanding for all. Unlike some of our workshops, these are not associated with Red and Blue, but Pro and Con.
Sample Debate: “Resolved: America is a Racist Nation”
On July 15th, Braver Angels sought an answer to one of the most charged and challenging questions facing our country today. Is racism embedded in our institutions, our culture, our American story? This debate brought a panel of passionate voices together for an honest conversation about the state of our nation’s values and systems.
Other Programs
Other programs offered by Braver Angels include:
1:1 Conversations Across Difference provides a way for two people on different sides of a divide (red/blue, generational, urban/rural, or race/ethnicity/culture) to connect in two structured 1-hour conversations between.
Film Discussions invites participants to watch a selected movie, then meet online with others who are similar to or different from them to discuss it.
College Debates Program is a civil debates program for college students, with intra-classroom, intra-college, inter-college, and national formats.
Corporate Trainings include customized Braver Angels workshops, 1:1 Conversations, keynote speakers, and retreats.
Find an Event
In addition to the events and activities of the Braver Angels Connecticut Alliance, other events hosted by Braver Angels organization and its many local alliances can be found on the national events calendar.
And More…
For the full set of programs, events, and resources offered by Braver Angels, visit the national website and YouTube channel.