Getting past Tri-City divisiveness. Columbia Basin Badger Club discusses civil discourse

America is starkly polarized on a range of political and cultural issues, from mask and vaccination mandates to Black Lives Matter, from the presidential election to cancel culture. Letters to the editor and Facebook posts spit accusations at one another.

This divide can strain personal relationships among co-workers, friends and family. Gatherings, even on Zoom, can be tense and uncomfortable. We may dread raising some issues, and, to avoid being ostracized, remain silent on urgent, immediate questions regarding freedom and health.

In a recent issue of The Atlantic, journalist George Packer presents a useful analysis of the conservative-liberal split by describing what he calls the “Four Americas,” each with its own history, demographic, and fundamental values. In a nutshell: Free America is the Reagan free market advocates, anti-government libertarians, and cultural traditionalists; Smart America is the tech economy, globalists, and educated elites; Real America is the working class, rural or urban, and evangelicals; Just America is those marginalized by social injustice and inequality. Packer argues that while each of these Americas offers truths to the national conversation, each has its limitations and, to some degree, encroaches on the others’ territory.

While Packer’s analysis provides a solid framework for understanding, it remains a broad brush. He doesn’t address how to negotiate, face to face, with a dismissive brother or defiant co-worker.

The nonpartisan National Institute for Civil Discourse suggests an approach to these situations. Created in 2011 and chaired by past presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, it explores the problem in “A Crisis in Civility?” (2019). In the lead chapter, “Two Concepts of Civility,” Anthony Laden argues that civil discourse is not simply tolerance nor polite silence, but a willingness to listen, to process, and to engage over time.

The ability to engage in civil discourse, Laden further says, is the foundational activity of democracy. The ability to discuss contentious issues is the basis of civil society. When that conversation falls silent, Laden argues, democracy is failing.

So when tensions arise regarding vaccinations for a family gathering, or the legitimacy of the 2020 election, how can we specifically engage in a manner that allows authentic sharing of our individual perceptions? How can we break through stereotypes and misinformation and still maintain relationships? How can we break the silence, achieve civil discourse, and further democracy in our own small way?

The Columbia Basin Badger Club’s online forum “Achieving Civil Discourse” at noon on Thursday, Sept. 16, will examine strategies we might use to engage on difficult subjects with those closest to us.

Joining us will be Allen Johnson. A graduate of the University of Washington with a master’s in communications, Johnson also holds a PhD in counseling psychology from WSU. He has trained, counseled and consulted in a number of areas, including team building, decision-making and interpersonal communication.

He is the author of numerous articles and seven fiction and non-fiction books. This Side of Crazy is a compilation of self-help articles originally published in the Tri-City Herald. The Power Within: The Five Disciplines of Personal Effectiveness outlines how love, responsibility, vision, commitment and service work together to generate personal, interpersonal and organizational well-being.

Register for this forum, which will include a Q&A session, at columbiabasinbadgers.com to receive a confirmation and link to join the Zoom forum. Cost is $5 for nonmembers, while club members can join for free.