The Braver Angels Podcast

Coleman Hughes has made a name for himself as a public commentator. A contributor at City Journal, Quillette, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times among others, he's been celebrated for his sober analysis of American race relations. He's also… a rapper. Today, he joins Braver Angels music ambassador Alma Cook to talk about his artistic past, present, and future. Learn where the inspirat...

Since the advent of film, the racial dynamics of American life have been reflected, or perhaps distorted, by a movie and entertainment industry whose impact on racial issues has been more complex than many realize.  Joy Donnell, cofounder of the Center for Intersectional Media and Entertainment (CIME), joins BA National Ambassador John Wood Jr. to explore Hollywood's legacy—a legacy she believes i...

We think we have the answers. But what happens when we start asking more questions? In her new book, I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times, Braver Angels' director of storytelling Mónica Guzmán explains how and why we should get more curious—and how it might just hold the key to bridging our political divide. To learn more about M...

From the mid 1980's to the early 1990's, the United States of America was ravaged by the violence and destruction associated with the crack cocaine trade and epidemic. But more than anyone, inner-city African American communities felt the pain, setting the stage for mass incarceration and the social conflicts that rest in the background of our modern controversies over race and policing. In this e...

Annette Ritter is a school-of-hard-knocks grandma and community college student from rural Little Orleans, Maryland. Len Breslow is a retired cognitive psychologist from suburban Chevy Chase, Maryland. Annette used to couch-hop on the poor side of Berkeley, California; Len got a graduate degree there.  In this We the People's Forum, a Braver Angels event where everyday Americans get time at the po...

Professor John Sibley Butler (University of Texas in Austin), described as America's leading black business historian, is "straight outta the black bourgeoisie." Yes African-American history is riddled with tragedy and oppression. But this Black History Month, and every other month for that matter, Butler wishes to remind people of the long history of black self-sufficiency, community building, an...

Braver Angels has never been shy about engaging our nation's most sensitive political issues. Last year, we held a public debate on the 2020 election exploring themes of voter fraud, voter suppression, and disagreements about the outcome. Recently, we hosted a podcast with a guest who claimed that the January 6th riots were incited by liberal activists working in collusion with the FBI.  After ini...

Plagued by pandemics of fear and distrust, many of us have come to hold some scary ideas about different people and places across our country. But what's the reality?  Daniel Seddiqui has seen more of America than almost anyone. After working 50 jobs in 50 states in 50 weeks in 2009—from coal miner in West Virginia to bartender in Louisiana—he has since completed three more treks across the countr...

Esther Cash is a liberal college student at Biola, a conservative Christian university in California. As a program associate for Braver Angels, she helps coordinate our debates program in communities and colleges across the country.  Today, she joins the podcast to discuss her own political evolution, the nature of polarization on college campuses, and how young people can lead the generational ef...

Peter Wood is an anthropologist and president of the National Association of Scholars. He believes—like many Americans on the right—that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump and the January 6th riots were incited by the left in collusion with the FBI. He's also the author of a new book called Wrath: America Enraged , which wrestles with our politics of anger and counsels conservatives on...

In the first Braver Angels Podcast episode of the new year, John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor share a deep and heartfelt conversation about the state of American politics on the one-year anniversary of January 6th, 2021. Happy 2022! Ready to become a Braver Angels member and build a house united together? Join us: https://braverangels.org/get-involved/#become-member   Twitter: @braverangels , @ci...

In the 1950's and 60's the reverend Martin Luther King Jr. inspired a nation with a message of hope, aimed against the forces of racism, inspired by the philosophy of nonviolence and what he believed to be the moral and spiritual teachings of the gospel. Is that philosophy relevant to today's fights against injustice and our struggle against polarization? Reverend Adam Taylor of Sojourners (author...

On the weekend of December 9, 2016, a small group of citizens—half Donald Trump voters, half Hillary Clinton voters—gathered in South Lebanon, Ohio, for an experiment. Could we talk with each other rather than at each other?  Five years later, the co-founders of Braver Angels (David Blankenhorn, Bill Doherty, and David Lapp) reflect on that inaugural event and how it led to the birth of Braver Ang...

In a special all-women roundtable edition of our podcast, two Red and two Blue Braver Angels leaders get passionate, personal, and curious about what led them to hold opposing views on one of the toughest political dilemmas in America: abortion.  How do voices on the left and right strengthen or weaken our country's grasp of what's at stake? And how do these women respond to the heartfelt, challen...

What are the historical roots of political polarization in America? Why do Americans hold such dissonant perspectives on the meaning of our core ideals? How might we understand our history to create a more perfect future union?  Ciaran O'Connor hosts Seth David Radwell, author of American Schism, for a wide-ranging conversation on the political, cultural, and epistemological dimensions of our poli...

Toxic levels of ungrace are tearing us apart. That's the diagnosis from Kirsten Powers, senior political analyst at CNN and former political analyst at Fox News. But is grace really possible across divides this huge and seemingly threatening? In a candid interview with host Mónica Guzmán, Kirsten draws on her Catholic faith, her years of cross-partisan debates in the spotlight, her experience with...

Andrew Yang isn't done challenging the way Americans look at politics. The former presidential candidate and entrepreneur is launching the Forward Party: a third-party effort to depolarize our politics through election reform. Can it work? And what does Yang have to say about the sensitive issues of race that divide Americans? Silas Kulkarni and John Wood, Jr. ask probing questions from a red and...

Ciaran O'Connor convenes Hawk Newsome, co-founder of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York; David Iwinski, a Trump supporter who helps lead Braver Angels Debates; and Dr. Tess Russell, an anesthesiologist and intensive care specialist at Columbia New York Presbyterian Hospital for a raw and wide-ranging discussion on trust, science, and the COVID vaccine. Twitter: @braverangels , @ciaranjoconnor...

Barbara Thomas is a lifelong liberal. Rick Hotchner is a committed conservative. As a couple, they are one of a dwindling number of politically mixed marriages between Democrats and Republicans in America. They made a life-changing decision last summer to leave a diplomatic post abroad to depolarize America—one divided relationship at a time. How do they stand each other when they can't stand each...

Social media has become a prism that distorts our identities, empowers status-seeking extremists, and renders moderates all but invisible. In his new book, Breaking the Social Media Prism, Duke professor Christopher Bail challenges common myths about echo chambers, foreign misinformation campaigns, and radicalizing algorithms, revealing that the solution to political tribalism lies deep inside our...

Ready to take on the COVID-19 divide? In this special roundtable edition of our podcast, two red and two blue Braver Angels leaders tackle big questions about vaccines and vaccine mandates. How do the left and right help and hurt America's struggle against the pandemic? Are President Joe Biden's vaccine mandates tough love or bad medicine? Featuring John Wood, Jr. (national ambassador), Alma Cook...

Joy Mayer just launched a bold effort to help conservatives trust journalists. What will it take for America's local journalists to tell stories responsibly—not just for liberals, whose views most journalists identify with, but also for conservatives, whose views are easier for most journalists to misunderstand, neglect, or dismiss?  Joy, director of the Trusting News Project, joins host and fello...

After enduring significant childhood trauma, Morgan Brown spent much of his adult life homeless. Now an advocate for housing and mental health, Morgan shares his perspectives on trust, dignity, and how "going the extra gracious mile and beyond" can make all the difference—both on the streets and in politics.  Morgan resides in Montpelier, Vermont, where he previously served on the Montpelier Homel...

Is it worth striking up a conversation with the stranger in the checkout line? What's on the other side of that silence, and how do we bridge it? Journalist Joe Keohane is out with a new book, The Power of Strangers: The Benefits of Connecting in a Suspicious World, which explores the lost art of connecting with unfamiliar people. Ciaran O'Connor talks with Joe about why and how we should talk to...

Ever wonder just how expansive the American national service system is and how those involved in it see their work? Luke Nathan Phillips interviews AmeriCorps' chief of external affairs, Sri Preston Kulkarni, about the work and mission of the organization. They discuss how AmeriCorps aims to promote service and national unity in troubling times, also exploring the history of national service progr...