Carlos Hernandez is a Latino Braver Angels leader from San Francisco who supports President Trump. In this episode, Carlos talks to host Ciaran O’Connor about what it’s like to be a conservative in San Francisco, why he supports the President, and how he believes Braver Angels’ work can build trust and understanding between those who plan to vote differently in November. This conversation is a part of Braver Angels 2020, a national campaign to help Americans “Fight Right” by debating painfully divisive issues in a constructive way that prizes vigor and virtue over rancor and vitriol.
‘Braver Angels really helped me to see the humanity in people from the other side’: One high schooler’s journey to better political conversations
06/18/2026
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A native of Boulder, Colorado, Mia didn’t know many Trump supporters—and she was nervous to engage with them. “I was like, ‘Don’t they hate women? Don’t they hate black people?’” she said. “That was my initial belief because that’s what I had heard about people who voted for Trump.” But she quickly realized she was wrong. During the first Braver Lens session, Mia was able to connect with conservatives in the group and recognize their points of commonality. “When we met, they showed their pictures, and explained their life stories, and I was able to see where our values overlap,” she said.
1 thought on “A Trump-Supporting Braver Angel”
I have so appreciated the work of your organization for months now and am more engaged everyday. I am a very liberal ‘blue’ in a relationship with a decidedly ‘colorless’ libertarian and I’m trying everyday to find the commonalities among our disagreements, and Braver Angels has helped tremendously. I found this conversation between Ciaran and Carlos a great example of seeking understanding, but I did feel there was a huge gap (for me at least) between understanding why Carlos had grown up liberal “in a bastion of liberal progressivism” and shifted so sharply toward the conservative party. Maybe I missed what he sees as quite obvious reasons, but I felt he sort of skipped over what, to me, was the most important part of his story in understanding why suddenly Donald Trump seemed to better emulate the values that he was seeking in a leader. I’d love to hear more from him about this. Thanks for what you all do!