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At Braver Angels we decided to compromise in a way that, in some respects, was similar to what Chris Anderson chose to do at TED.

We’re almost in the final month of the Rise For America campaign, and we have nearly 1,200 actions committed! It’s not too late to get involved — and there’s a fun and easy way to jump in and make a difference.

Civility isn’t just a desire to find common ground, or to bury our differences and sing “kumbaya” with people who disagree with us. It’s not a desire for ideological unity, a jettisoning of our core convictions, or a refusal to engage in healthy conflict.

There’s a big divide in America, and it’s not often talked about. It’s not the divide between Democrats and Republicans, or between white Americans and black Americans. It’s the divide between the haves and the have-nots. Anthony’s song speaks to the millions of Americans who feel unheard by a perceived authoritarian class they feel is more interested in serving themselves than their constituents.

If you’ve been to one of our debates, you’ll know they’re unlike any other. They’re not a competition, but a collective search for truth. 

“I attended parts of the convention and was struck by two things at once,” Farah Stockman, a member of The New York Times editorial board, wrote. “The positive energy that both Gangstagrass and Braver Angels give off—and how much it runs against the grain of what’s trending in the rest of America.”

At Braver Angels we, and our allies, are building a movement. It is a movement for reconciliation and goodwill in America that responds to the civic ailments and the cancer of animosity that has spread across our land.

Have you heard about our Rise for America Campaign?

If I’ve learned anything working with elected officials to bridge our toughest divides, it’s that they are just as tired of the toxicity as we are, if not more. And that no matter how powerful they seem, they can’t change the game on their own. They need us to stand up and say we’re with them.

On Wednesday, nearly 700 delegates — equally divided between Red and Blue — gathered in Gettysburg at the 2023 Braver Angels Convention. We came together to bridge the partisan divide, bring a spirit of goodwill to our politics, and spark a movement that’s larger than our organization alone.

I am pleased to announce that starting Wednesday evening, Braver Angels will be live-streaming the 2023 National Convention on our homepage at braverangels.org.

For those who can’t attend the convention in person, you can tune in online starting with the Opening Plenary at 7pm ET on Wednesday July 5.

The truth is, many issues are more complex than we’re willing to admit. I think most of us share similar values, even if those values lead us to different conclusions.

At Braver Angels we are telling a different story about what is happening in America. Come join us.

We may need labels like “red” and “blue” to do what we do. But let us never confuse our labels with the truth of who we actually are.