Subscribe to Braver Angels Debate Dispatch letter HERE.
Dear Friends,
So glad to see you back for Issue 2—or if you’re just joining us, welcome! Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of chairing our National Debate, Resolved: America needs the changes President Trump and his administration promise.
We chose this topic because so many of you asked us to, so it’s no surprise that it had the highest attendance of any debate since we escaped from pandemic isolation. With so many participants, we needed two rooms; Natalie chaired the other.
In Natalie’s room, the opening speaker talked about the rejection she’s faced over her opposition to vaccines, a view she holds because of her own chronic illness. “I made the difficult decision not to vaccinate knowing that it would bring a mound of scorn and rejection upon my head, and it did,” she told the room.
President Trump’s supporters tell me stories like this all the time: they had a concern and no one would hear it. I hear it often with my Director of Debates hat on, and I hear it even more as Red Co-Chair of my local alliance. Yes, there are some bold voices who love to shout their praises of Donald Trump (they carried the affirmative side of Tuesday’s debate) but there are plenty more who feel uncomfortable, fearing ostracism, and leading them to be poorly understood as individuals.
What’s more, though, I also hear all the time from Blues that they want to know why on Earth anyone would support President Trump. If only they could understand, maybe they could begin to figure out some constructive answer to whatever’s got so many of their fellow Americans so angry. Maybe at least they could sleep a little better.
This is why we do what we do.
This is why, in these first 100 Days of Donald Trump’s second administration, we are going to do two things: first, we’re gonna launch a series of debates to dig deeper into these issues, and second, we’ll redouble our efforts to bring in new members from a wide variety of perspectives, especially those that are shyer or less well represented in our debates. I’m talking about populists. The working class. Young people. Minorities of all types, from ethnic to ideological. By doing so, we hope to better serve Reds and Blues alike. After all, as one Blue participant told the crowd after the debate, “I came tonight with the question in my head, ‘How could anyone in their right mind disagree with my position on the statement,’ and I got a really good answer to that question. Thank you everyone!”
As for our courageous participant who opposed vaccines, she had this to say: “This is my first experience with you guys. Usually when I say in a public forum, ‘You know, I'm an antivaxxer,’ I get talked over and chased out of the room and treated with great disrespect, so I appreciated the thoughtful comments and questions, and just being a part of things. I can't thank you enough."
Tuesday night's debate was a success because we had enough brave participants willing to give our community a shot. They trusted those hundreds of attendees to live up to our collective promise to listen. My friends, you came through with flying colors on Tuesday night. We may not have changed anyone’s minds about policy, but as you know, that’s not our goal. Our goal is to better understand each other.
There is something profoundly human about the need for intellectual and moral agency. Our debate program should help satisfy this need. Yes, we must decide on policies, and those are often zero-sum, with winners and losers. We don’t claim this will ever be easy. But the opportunity to speak and be heard is the sine qua non of a healthy civic culture. It’s only one step, but without that step, we go nowhere. It’s our best hope for addressing the fear and anger that permeates Left and Right alike.
Would you like to help us? One simple thing you can do is this: forward this newsletter to a few friends who think Braver Angels is a bunch of mushy moderates and invite them to join us in our upcoming debate series to speak freely and fully without fear! Whatever their stances, they’re welcome here.
Resolved,
Jessie Mannisto
Director of Debates
You can sign up to participate in Braver Angels debates HERE!
Here is the email she sent yesterday morning. I thought it was really classy for her to reach out and ask my permission.
On Thursday, February 27, 2025, 8:09 AM, Jessie Mannisto <jessie@braverangels.org> wrote:
Jenny -- I watched the recording of your speech yesterday and was really moved by it. (I didn't see it live because I was chairing the same debate in another Zoom room, but people told me it was a highlight so I went to watch it.)
I was wondering if you'd be at all opposed to my mentioning this as a highlight in the Debate Dispatch letter that will go out tomorrow about our debate. It would definitely be in a positive light, but it was a sensitive thing you shared, so I don't want you to be blindsided with it!
Thank you so much for participating in our debate. I know what it's like to make tough decisions that subject you to social sanction -- but personal integrity is incredibly important. People don't realize this until they're tested themselves, unfortunately. I'm glad you felt heard, and I hope our program can keep providing a space like this to those who need it. And I hope you'll join us again in the future!
Warmly,
Jessie Mannisto
Director of Debates
I just assumed she would want my headshot and bio for the newsletter, so I sent it along with my response.
Jessie,
Yes, you are welcome to highlight whatever would be appropriate for the Debate Dispatch letter.
As I spoke I was praying my oxygen concentrator was not too loud! I am glad to hear others felt it was a highlight. Has the debate been rebroadcast anywhere?
My headshot is attached and my bio is…
Jenny Marie Hatch is a Podcasting Mom Blogger who lives in Colorado with her husband Paul and their little Silky Terrier Rosy Joy. Her Healthy Families Show is dedicated to helping families live more abundantly.
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