Start a Local Alliance - Braver Angels
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Start a Local Alliance

Thanks for considering starting a Braver Angels Alliance in your area! As you probably already know, Alliances are Braver Angels’ “boots on the ground” and help connect local efforts to national ones.

Here’s an overview of what it takes to start an Alliance. Each one has links to go to more detailed information.

First, Know These Things!

You have support! The Office of Field Operations, your State Coordinator and other, more seasoned Alliance leaders are here to help.

You can go as slowly or as quickly as you like! As the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day. It will take some time making connections. So, don’t get overwhelmed by the process.

Alliances have a lot of flexibility in how they’re run! This helps to make sure the local groups are meeting that area’s needs and interests. Here are a number of ways that Alliances run:

  • Engage in outreach to recruit new alliance members, with a focus on working towards a Red-Blue balance.
  • Spread the word about Braver Angels by engaging with the local media and community organizations. Braver Angels Ambassadors are trained in how to do this work effectively.
  • Create initiatives to welcome people who have recently become Braver Angels members, helping them find their own path within Braver Angels.

These Braver Angels workshop and debate events are planned and run by trained organizers, moderators, debate whips, and (if they are online) Zoom event managers. They provide participants with foundational Braver Angels experiences and skills. Alliance members can be trained in these roles, as needed.

As alliance members gain experience with Braver Angels workshops and develop their own depolarizing skills, they can begin designing events and initiatives for their alliance, drawing on the principles that make our Braver Angels workshops and debates so effective.

These groups are led by one or more facilitators who help the group build trust, deepen their understanding of each other’s political perspectives, discuss a range of political topics, and find common ground on policy issues where it exists.

Braver Politics events seek to reform our politics so politicians will engage more constructively with their constituents and with other politicians.

  • If alliance members find broad consensus on a policy issue, they can decide to engage in advocacy on that issue.
  • There must be at least one Red and Blue champion willing to spend time and energy to lead the work on the issue. In addition, at least 75% of Reds and 75% of Blues in the alliance must support the issue.

FAQs

An Alliance needs a Red and Blue Co-Chair to get started. Alliance Co-Chairs help the local Braver Angels group grow and thrive, providing vision and leadership.

Alliances are the heart of Braver Angels. They bring our mission to life locally, providing a space for respectful dialogue, community building, and leadership development. Alliances offer members a unique opportunity to connect with people across the political divide, learn new skills, and make a positive impact on their communities.Alliances provide:

  • An enhanced Braver Angels experience
  • Community Support
  • Leadership Opportunities

While there’s a great deal of flexibility, Alliances generally fall into one of three types:

  • Discussion-based
  • Events/Workshops-based
  • Hybrid (combination of the above–the most common)

 

Note: Many Alliances also engage in social activities as well to get to know each other better.

First, a reminder, that Alliances have a lot of flexibility and can get started as slowly or as quickly as the Co-chairs desire! Here’s an overview of the recommended steps:

1. Get acquainted with Braver Angels, recommendations for Alliances, OFO, your state coordinator and Basic BA principles. For a recommended checklist, click here.

2. Identify initial planning and outreach. NOTE–Checking in with your state coordinator or Regional Lead to let them know of your interest is REQUIRED at this point. That way, they can provide support and insights into other resources. Other than that, you might want to consider other ideas to build your local coalition and strengthen your knowledge of the support Alliances can rely on. For a recommended checklist, click here.

3. Begin holding meetings and events. (This can occur before or after you register your Alliance.) Click here for additional information and a Meetings and Events guide

4. Register the Alliance. Hopefully, following the recommendations, you have all you need to start your Alliance. You become official once you register the Alliance through OFO.

5. Then, you will go through a REQUIRED Orientation that will provide you with more resources to build your Alliance. While you can take as long as you like to form the Alliance, it will not be recognized as an “official” Braver Angels Alliance until it’s registered.

Braver Angels Support