Disarming Conversations, Connecting Across Divides
May 25 — July 10th
Tuesday Workshops (7): May 25, June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 and July 6 from 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern (8) and
Saturday Film Discussions (3): May 8th, June 5, and July 10 from 2pm-4pm Pacific / 3pm-5pm Mtn / 4pm-6pm Central / 5pm-7pm Eastern
If you are in a different time zone, you can check the start time for your location here.
⬇ REGISTER BELOW ⬇
In this time of increasing polarization, ordinary people like us can help disarm hate, connect across divides, and decrease the likelihood of violence.
This series will help you gain skills in communicating with people who hold views opposed to our own - whether they’re family members, neighbors, coworkers, or others. In this 8-week program, you (and an amazing cohort of participants) will explore practices for connecting across divides, disarming conversations, unlearning hate, dealing with toxic polarization, applying interpersonal nonviolence, de-escalating political tensions, unpacking misperceptions, opening space for change, peacebuilding, using radical empathy, and more. The series will be practice-oriented, helping you learn and develop new skills and apply them in real time. This program draws from the best practices available and features guest presenters working with these skills in a variety of ways. We will explore empathy circles, deep canvassing, narrative sharing, and more. We will learn from real life stories and from our own experiences.
These are lifelong practices - this series will help you take the next step on the journey.
This program includes short documentary film discussion nights (3), mini-workshops with guest presenters (3), bi-weekly cohort practice sessions (4), and invitations to apply this work in your community and share your learnings with the cohort as you do so.
Crossing Divides Cohort
This 25-30 person cohort will journey through this program together. Each week, we will be learning and practicing together, while also selecting and adapting practices to explore in your community. We will have regular opportunities to debrief our experiences of applying these lessons in realtime. Each mini-workshop with a guest presenter will also include practice time in breakout rooms. The extended practice sessions in between each workshop will be participant-focused, with opportunities to share stories about your experiences with the practices, as well as to delve further into your questions.
We strongly encourage you to bring a friend or two with you to the cohort! Practicing these skills together is both powerful and supportive. (And sometimes even fun.)
We will explore:
What to do when a relative spews out hateful comments.
How to communicate with people who don’t share our political beliefs.
Ways to connect with our neighbors to de-escalate toxic polarization.
How to reach out across the divides to restore common humanity.
What approaches help to open minds instead of close them.
Fee Structure:
Whole Course/Crossing Divides Cohort (10 events): $150 (40% discount for participating in full program), scholarships available
Can’t attend the whole program? You can drop-in on the Movie Nights ($20/ea) and Guest Presenter Sessions ($20/ea). We’ll have those posted separately later on.
Schedule/Overview:
Special! Movie Night I: Re-Humanization: What Does It Take To Leave Hate Behind? (If you missed it we can send you the recording)
Saturday, May 8th, 2pm-4:30pm Pacific / 3pm-5:30pm Mtn / 4pm-6:30pm Central / 5pm-7:30pm Eastern
This special event will explore the stories of how Christian Picciolini left the neo-Nazis and filmmaker Deeyah Khan’s Radical Compassion in the face of extremism. Participants will watch a short talk by Christian Picciolini about his journey, and then two short interviews by Deeyah Khan, a Muslim woman who decided to interview white supremacists, jihadists, and other hate group members. Following the videos, we will open a series of discussion questions in breakout rooms, exploring the themes of fear and curiosity, hate and openness, and what helps to dismantle extremism.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Week 1: Crossing Divides Cohort Introduction & Community Building
Tuesday, May 25, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
A dedicated session for all of the Crossing Divides Cohort to connect with one another, enjoy ample time and space for introductions, and set intentions for this series together.
Week 2: Prophetic Empathy
Tuesday, June 1, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Guest Presenter Cat Zavis from the Spiritual Progressive Network will share her tools and practices. Her presentation will be followed by exercise/conversation.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Movie Night II: Behind Best of Enemies - The Real Ann Atwater
Saturday, June 5th, 2pm-4pm Pacific / 3pm-5pm Mtn / 4pm-6pm Central / 5pm-7pm Eastern
The feature film, Best of Enemies, tells the true story of how two vehemently opposed residents of Durham, North Carolina - a Black Organizer and KKK leader - wound up working together to desegregate the public schools. We will watch a documentary of Ann Atwater speaking about that experience, and then discuss how this story connects to our lives.
Note: You are strongly encouraged to also watch Best of Enemies at your convenience prior to this discussion.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Week 3: Crossing Divides Cohort Connection & Practice Session
Tuesday, June 8, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Week 4: Empathy Circles w/ Edwin Rustch
Tuesday, June 15, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Guest Presenter: Edwin Rustch will offer a short talk on Empathy Circles, followed by exercise/conversation.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Week 5: Crossing Divides Cohort Connection & Practice Session
Tuesday, June 22, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Week 6: Deep Listening & Deep Canvassing w/ Kathleen Campisano
Tuesday, June 29, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Deep Listening and Deep Canvassing offer tools for opening hearts and minds - including our own. Kathleen Campisano will share how Deep Canvassing was developed as a community organizing tool, how it has a proven effect on changing people’s views on hot button topics, and how we can use it in our own work. The talk will be followed by exercise/conversation.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Week 7: Crossing Divides Cohort Connection & Practice Session
Tuesday, July 6, 1pm-3pm Pacific / 2pm-4pm Mtn / 3pm-5pm Central / 4-6pm Eastern
Movie Night III: How a Black Blues Musician Got KKK Members To Quit
Saturday, July 10th, 2pm-4pm Pacific / 3pm-5pm Mtn / 4pm-6pm Central / 5pm-7pm Eastern
“How can you hate me if you don’t even know me?” With this provocative question, Black blues musician Daryl Davis dared KKK members to get to know him. He convinced hundreds of white supremacists to quit the KKK and turn in their robes. Following the screening of an interview with him, we will explore how moral courage, curiosity, and honesty can lead to very surprising results.
(Open to the general public, as well as the Crossing Divides Cohort.)
Presenter Bios
Rosa Zubizarreta
Rosa Zubizarreta works as a consultant, coach, and group facilitator. She leads workshops in Dynamic Facilitation, a collaborative sense-making process for working creatively with divergent perspectives. In addition to experience with Future Search, Open Space Technology, World Café, and Appreciative Inquiry, she has also trained in Focusing and Internal Family Systems work. You can learn more about her at www.DiaPraxis.com.
Rivera Sun
Rivera Sun is an activist and the author of numerous books, including The Dandelion Insurrection and The Way Between. She is the program coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Nonviolent Cities Program. She trains people nationwide in strategy for nonviolent campaigns and trained in peacebuilding at the River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding. www.riverasun.com
Cat Zavis
Cat Zavis is the Executive Director of the Network of Spiritual Progressives (NSP), a collaborative divorce attorney, mediator, coach, and trainer in conflict resolution and empathic communication. She is currently pursuing a Rabbinic ordination through Aleph – the Jewish Renewal Ordination Program. Since November 2015, she has been leading trainings for hundreds of people on Spiritual Activism: Prophetic Empathy & Revolutionary Love in an effort to help people understand the underlying psycho-spiritual crisis in our society that has given rise to our current situation and ways to transform our society to one of love and justice. Cat uses her empathic training and expertise to draw connections between people’s personal life struggles and the larger social context and systems in which they live, empowering people to change not only their personal lives but also society as a whole. www.spiritualprogressives.org and www.tikkun.org
Edwin Rutsch
Edwin Rutsch is the founding director of the Center for Building a Culture of Empathy. The center’s website, CultureOfEmpathy.com, is the internet’s most comprehensive portal for empathy-related material. It hosts many empathy building projects including interviews with over 300 experts on the topic, trainings and the Empathy Tent. The Tent goes to public events and offers listening, facilitated dialogue and conflict mediation. The centers current focus is on designing and hosting empathy trainings. Center for Building a Culture of Empathy: http://cultureofempathy.com Empathy Circle: http://www.empathycircle.com
Kathleen Campisano, Deep Canvassing (Bio/Picture, to be added)