Braver Angels seeks to close the political divide among neighbors

On Tuesday, at the polls in Jaffrey, two longtime friends on opposite sides of the political spectrum will be campaigning at the polls.

But rather than advocating for their preferred candidates, they’ll be promoting something different – bridging differences and coming together.

Mark Beckwith and David Jeffries of Jaffrey are both members of Braver Angels, a movement that is working to bridge the partisan divide. Braver Angels has helped to facilitate conversations and workshops among Americans with opposing views – starting politically, but it has also expanded into other areas, such as faith leaders.

Beckwith has been a member of the organization for six years, and said he joined after seeing how polarized the political spectrum had become. He invited Jeffries to join with him. The two live only a few houses down from each other, and often attend neighborhood dinners or barbecues together.

“The fundamental idea is that red and blue people can talk with respect, and with active and open ears, to people on the ‘other side’ without engendering hate, or a lot of the vitriol that we’ve seen from both sides in this election, and candidly, elections going back to 2000,” Jeffries said. “People don’t talk to each other with respect and collegiality and listening politely to other’s perspectives, and without ad hominem attacks on other people anymore.”

Beckwith said that when people can talk to each other without attacking, there is the possibility of finding common ground.

“Some of the differences we have get highlighted in the public domain, but they’re not as entrenched as some people would have us believe,” Beckwith said.

On Election Day, the duo, along with over 100 other Democrat-Republican pairs across the country, will be at polling places, talking to people not about the candidates, but about Braver Angels and closing that partisan gap. They’ll each be wearing a red or blue Braver Angels hat, though they’ll be switching hats throughout the day, Jeffries said.

Jeffries said that while people have always had disagreements over politics, and they were sometimes vitriolic it seems to have gotten worse with the rise of social media, cable television and the constant news cycle and the downward trend of people joining community clubs and groups and churches and social organizations. Now, he said rather than bonding over a shared love of golf or bowling, people are too quick to write off potential connections over political differences.

Beckwith agreed, saying that people are increasingly “living, working and recreating among people that think like themselves.”

On Tuesday from 8 to 9:30 p.m., Braver Angels will be hosting an online gathering to discuss how Braver Angels engaged with people on Election Day. Leaders from across the country, including Beckwith, will discuss the day’s movement. To sign up and receive information about the event, visit braverangels.org/event/election-night-gathering-2.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244, or asaari@ledgertranscript.com.