Have a Conversation With Your Loved Ones About What's At Stake
If the election proved anything, it's that issues were rarely the issue, and emotional appeals held sway over people's decisions. This will ring true as many of us head home over the holidays to encounter friends and family on the other side of the political divide. While it is all too easy to slide into the comforts of a holiday, we cannot normalize our current state of affairs, and whitewash the dangerous political, cultural, and social reality taking place.
What you can doWith the help of our friends at Flippable and guidance from therapists, we've put together some tips and resources for starting the conversation with family and friends:
Be prepared: Read this toolkit put out by SURJ, ask questions of those you don't agree with, work towards finding common ground, and if you feel up for counter argument try these.
Remember that hearing someone out is as important as being heard. A study shows that in-depth conversation moves people toward changing their minds.
Keep anger and hurt regarding the candidate separate from your feelings about the person because it's too easy to demonize someone.
Take into consideration that many of the people who voted for Trump didn't take his racist, sexist talk literally. They may have chosen to ignore it then, but don't let them ignore it now.
Challenge yourself to think in terms of both/and rather than neither/nor. Two things can be true at the same time rather than mutually exclusive.
If all else fails, text SOS to 82623, and SURJ will send you talking points to help you through these tough conversations (they'll even jump on a call to coach you through target: blank).
And remember to breathe.