In 1967, Ronald Reagan became the of the State of California. In his inaugural address, he talked about peaceful transfer of power, something he described as “the simple magic of the commonplace routine, which makes it a near miracle many of the world’s inhabitants.” He then went on to utter an iconic phrase that would be repeated by politicians for decades to come. “Freedom is a fragile thing,” said, “And it’s never more than one generation away extinction.”
Now like countless others, I have used that quote many times, but I have a to make. I never really believed it. Surely, after 250 years of this stuff, we no longer have to worry about losing it. I’m not pleased to report that I believe it now.
The first cracks in my confidence came during one those commonplace routines of transferring power as Lieutenant Governor the State of Utah. It was my duty to certify the votes of the electors for the presidential election. While meeting to do so was open to the public, it was so commonplace and routine that no one ever showed up. As I walked into the room, I was stunned to dozens of angry protesters screaming that the election had been stolen and demanding that we state law and change the votes of the electors.
Now I what you’re all thinking, and you’re probably wrong. This not 2020. This was 2016, and the protesters were Hillary Clinton supporters.
Now it got far somehow, four years later. With the election less than two months away, a friend and I were talking and lamenting about the state of our our country following a summer of destructive protests by extreme left and an extreme right that was already the validity of an election that hadn’t even happened yet. “Isn’t there something you can do,” she asked.
Well, that question haunted me all weekend, so I picked up the phone and called my opponent. By the way, I was running for at the same time that Trump and Biden were battling for the presidency. I called my opponent, a Democrat named Chris Peterson, I respected, and I said, “Hey, Chris, this is Spencer Cox. I have a crazy idea. What if we filmed campaign ad together?”
I could almost hear the confused look forming on face. To his credit, he agreed, and one week later, we were in a together. Let’s watch.
(Video) I’m Chris Peterson. And I’m Spencer Cox.
CP: We are currently in the final days of against each other to be your next governor.
SC: And while think you should vote for me —
CP: Yeah, but really, should vote for me.
SC: There are some things both agree on.
CP: We can debate issues without each other’s character.
SC: We can disagree without hating each other.
CP: And or lose, in Utah, we work together.
SC: So let’s show the country there’s a better way.
CP: My name is Chris Peterson.
SC: And I’m Spencer Cox.
(Together) we approve this message.
(Applause)
Well, the response was instantaneous and overwhelming. The ad went viral. Neither of us saw it coming. There were media requests from over the world, millions of views and shares. Perhaps really is an exhausted majority, I remember thinking to myself, and maybe this the message they want to hear.
I could actually my faith in the American idea start to rekindle. The of the ad validated my hope that most people really do their political leaders to uphold the values that we teach our kids. That we disagree without hate and contempt, even that we can find ways to treat each other with respect even we disagree. It seemed like there was a hunger for instead of arsonists.
My hunch was confirmed one year later, when a professor a version of our ad to the Stanford Polarization and Social Change Lab as part of huge depolarization experiment. It was chosen as one of 25 interventions to be tested on over 30,000 people. The result? Our ad actually a measurable depolarization effect, including a reduction in urges towards violence. It turns out really are things that we can do to alter the trajectory the United States.
Now look, I get it. It’s easy feel a little hopeless as Americans once again barrel towards an election with unsatisfying candidates and campaigns. But there good news. Over the past six months, 20 governors from all across the country have filmed similar ads, most of them with a public servant from the party. And the data continues to show that people really are hungry for something different. According to polling More in Common, 70 percent of Americans hate the divisiveness in politics. And it turns out that … Americans aren’t as far apart we think we are. The problem isn’t how far apart the average Republican and the average Democrat is the actual issues. In fact, we’re not much different than other Western democracies. problem is how far apart we think we are. Due in large part to conflict entrepreneurs in the media and politics, both sides overestimate the extremism on the other side by about 30 percent. Now interestingly, this perception gap is actually amongst progressive activists on the left and amongst extreme conservatives on right. So the people most engaged in the political process also have the most inaccurate views of other side.
But perhaps the best news of all is that there are very practical things that every of us can do every day to help heal the divides in our and our neighborhoods. First, we can start by turning off and tuning out some of those entrepreneurs. My wife and I, we stopped watching cable news 11 ago and immediately saw an improvement in our marriage, our family, and our mental health.
(Laughter and applause)
Now always elicits a laugh, but we’re not alone. Studies have found that more time spent on the latest headlines, whether through social media traditional media outlets, is really bad for our mental health. refer to this phenomenon in different ways, like media saturation overload or doomscrolling or anxiety. You see, more news, on all the time, isn’t making smarter, it’s just stressing us out.
Second, we can spend more time, preferably offline, with real people who are different than us. the words of Bryan Stevenson, proximity will empower you. see, it’s just harder to hate up close. “Tell me more about why you feel that way” is magical request.
Twenty years ago, we rarely identified each by our political identities first. As for me, I’m a father. I’m an NBA fan. I’m a terrible aspiring bassist in a band. I’m a Utahn. I’m an American. about you? You see, if we look beyond our political tribes, we can actually find shared identities and friendships unite instead of divide.
Now third, we can serve others. Service and volunteering help build up communities and improve our outlook on life and the people around us. forms of regular volunteering have even been associated with lower blood pressure. There is nothing for the soul or society than giving back. Aristotle really on to something when he described and summed up the essence life as: “Serve others and do good.”
Fourth, and finally, we can work to develop the classical political of humility, patience and moderation, without which, as John Adams explained, we all become ravenous beasts of prey. Now look, I know it’s laughable to talk about words like humility in political discourse, but I truly believe that it is the only way for us to remember how to disagree without hate and contempt. the words of Judge Learned Hand, who so eloquently stated, “The true spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure it is right. The spirit of liberty is the spirit which seeks to understand the minds of men and women.”
And I started with a quote from Ronald Reagan. went on to say that freedom is not ours way of inheritance. It must be fought for and defended constantly by generation, for it comes only once to a people and those in history who have known freedom and then lost it never known it again. Ladies and gentlemen, it is our solemn duty in our generation to again secure the freedoms endowed to all of us from on high. We cannot wait for politicians or media to do it. It will take real work, hard work by each us. But we must remember how to disagree without hate.
We must rise and meet that radical call to love our enemies — even, especially, our political opponents. It’s … It’s an … It’s not an easy answer, but it is a simple one. If really want to change the world, we have to start by our own hearts.
Thank you.
(Applause)