I grew up in a small town in Michigan, where my viewpoints were shaped by the people and context of the times — rooted in religion, community service, and a suspicion of government intervention. On Friday nights in high school, several friends and I would pile into a car and drive to a nearby town, to our favorite coffee shop, “Cup o’ Joe.” We’d sip creative coffees and nibble on confections while debating the politics of the day. Our discussions could be intense, but were often punctuated by laughter, as we seemed convinced we had all the answers.
Since, my life experiences have continued to shape my beliefs about government and public policy. As a teenager, I was introduced to the urban environment when I participated in a program offered by my high school that allowed me to visit inner-city Detroit one night each
week to tutor youth in reading, math, and life skills. These early experiences exposed me to the harsh realities around me and taught me that policy issues affect real people. They solidified my understanding of how public policies clearly impact people’s lives.
Still, many of my closest friends are those I grew up with, and we have differing viewpoints — sometimes completely so. And that’s okay. Political alignment is not a requirement for mutual respect or shared experience.
Historically, some of our country’s most significant public policies were forged through intense debate. The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was marked by fierce arguments and compromise. The resulting Constitution was a delicate balance of competing interests. Similarly, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 faced significant opposition, including a filibuster by Southern senators. It required persistent lobbying and negotiation to gain bipartisan support before it was finally signed into law. These examples remind us that democracy is not easy—it’s a messy affair, especially in a country as diverse as the United States. It is through this messiness however that we achieve significant advancements for our country’s principles and aspirational ideals.
The division in our political discourse is not new. However, something seems fundamentally amiss in today’s political climate. There is a vitriol that leaves little room for compromise.
According to the Pew Research Center, “What’s unique about this moment...is that these divisions have collapsed onto a singular axis where we find no toehold for common cause or collective national identity.” We’ve allowed our political disagreements to define us, relying on social media for connection, which acts as an echo chamber, amplifying our beliefs and further entrenching us. Unlike the past, where leaders engaged in direct debate and developed stronger arguments, today’s discourse often occurs in isolation, reinforced by social media algorithms. Today, our engagements are limited to a political discourse that brands anyone who disagrees as an enemy and unpatriotic. Each side trumpets the other as less patriotic, less intelligent, or immoral. For democracy to work, we must engage with one another—not in the hostile and unproductive politics of social media, online campaign snippets, and vehement attitudes that our side is the only side that’s right. We must act neighborly and walk alongside those we might not want to. According to a Public Agenda and USA Today report, “Putting Political Animosity in
Perspective,” 72% of Americans believe we should put aside political differences and focus on common ground. That’s part of it, but as we have seen since our founding, political messiness will always be with us. While divisions will always occur, they must not overshadow our ability to find common ground where we can move forward and forge a more perfect union.
As we mire ourselves in another presidential campaign season, surviving the barrage of sharply worded texts questioning our political contributions, perhaps the truest means for our society to progress is to engage. We must step outside the echo chamber of our lives and listen to those who differ from us. Organizations such as Living Room Conversations believe this is possible, bringing together people across the political spectrum to debate, discuss, and build understanding.
The question isn’t whether politics will be messy – it will be – or whether it will inflame our passions. It will. Or that we will have to compromise—because compromise is required of us. By engaging in the messiness of our process and understanding that we are all guided by common principles, we find that something remarkable can emerge. Just as those who came before us navigated intense debates and diverse viewpoints to produce foundational documents like the Constitution and the Civil Rights Act, we too can work through our differences to create a stronger, more unified country.
Perhaps within the crevices of our division lie the seedlings, straining for the sun, that if nurtured can grow into something as magnificent as our experiment with democracy. The challenges we face today are not so different from those of the past—they are simply amplified by modern communication tools and the speed of information exchange. However, the core solution remains the same: engagement, dialogue, and a willingness to listen and understand one another.
— Jeffrey Roth is a colonel in the New York Army National Guard. He is also best-selling author or Fires, Floods, and Taxicabs. The views expressed are his own.
