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