In 1967, Ronald Reagan became the of the State of California. In his inaugural address, he about the peaceful transfer of power, something he described as “the simple magic of the routine, which makes it a near miracle to many of the world’s inhabitants.” He 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 more than one generation away from extinction.”
Now like countless others, I have used that quote many times, but I a confession 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 actually believe it now.
The first cracks in my confidence came during one of those commonplace routines of transferring power as Lieutenant Governor of State of Utah. It was my duty to certify the votes of the for the presidential election. While the meeting to do so was to the public, it was so commonplace and routine that no one ever showed up. As I walked into the room, I stunned to see dozens of angry protesters screaming that the 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 2020. This was 2016, and the protesters were Hillary Clinton supporters.
Now got far worse somehow, four years later. With the election less two months away, a friend and I were talking lamenting about the state of our our country following summer of destructive protests by the 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 me all weekend, so I picked up the phone and called my opponent. By way, I was running for governor at the same time that Trump and Biden were battling for presidency. I called my opponent, a Democrat named Chris Peterson, whom I respected, I said, “Hey, Chris, this is Spencer Cox. I have crazy idea. What if we filmed a campaign ad together?”
I could almost hear the confused forming on his 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 the final days of campaigning against each other to your next governor.
SC: And while I think you should vote for me —
CP: Yeah, but really, you should vote me.
SC: There are 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, in Utah, we work together.
SC: let’s show the country that there’s a better way.
CP: My name is Peterson.
SC: And I’m Spencer Cox.
(Together) And we approve this message.
(Applause)
Well, the was instantaneous and overwhelming. The ad went viral. Neither of us saw it coming. There were media requests from all over the world, millions of views and shares. Perhaps really is an exhausted majority, I remember thinking to myself, and maybe this is the message want to hear.
I could actually feel my faith in the idea start to rekindle. The popularity of the ad validated my hope that most people do want their political leaders to uphold the values we teach our kids. That we can disagree without hate contempt, even that we can find ways to treat each other with respect even when we disagree. It seemed like was a hunger for architects instead of arsonists.
My hunch confirmed one year later, when a professor submitted a version of our ad to the Stanford Polarization and Change Lab as part of a huge depolarization experiment. It chosen as one of 25 interventions to be tested over 30,000 people. The result? Our ad actually had a measurable depolarization effect, including a reduction in urges towards violence. It turns out there really are things that we can do to alter the trajectory of the United States.
Now look, I get it. It’s easy to feel a little hopeless Americans once again barrel towards an election with unsatisfying candidates and campaigns. But there is good news. Over the six months, 20 governors from all across the country have filmed similar ads, most of them with a public servant from the opposing party. And data continues to show that people really are hungry for something different. According polling from More in Common, 70 percent of Americans hate the divisiveness in politics. And it also turns out that … Americans aren’t as far apart as we think we are. The problem isn’t far apart the average Republican and the average Democrat is on the actual issues. In fact, we’re not much different than other Western democracies. The problem how far apart we think we are. Due in large part to conflict entrepreneurs both the media and politics, both sides overestimate the extremism on the other side by 30 percent. Now interestingly, this perception gap is actually strongest amongst progressive activists on the and amongst extreme conservatives on the right. So the people most in the political process also have the most inaccurate views of the 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 nations and neighborhoods. First, we can start by turning off and tuning out some of those conflict entrepreneurs. My wife and I, we watching cable news 11 years ago and immediately saw an in our marriage, our family, and our mental health.
(Laughter and applause)
Now that always elicits laugh, but we’re not alone. Studies have found that more time on the latest headlines, whether through social media or traditional media outlets, is really bad for our mental health. Psychologists refer this phenomenon in different ways, like media saturation overload or doomscrolling or headline anxiety. You see, more news, on all time, isn’t making us smarter, it’s just stressing us out.
Second, we can more time, preferably offline, with real people who are different than us. In the words Bryan Stevenson, proximity will empower you. You see, it’s just harder to hate up close. “Tell me more why you feel that way” is a magical request.
Twenty years ago, we rarely each other by our political identities first. As for me, I’m a father. I’m NBA fan. I’m a terrible aspiring bassist in a band. I’m a Utahn. I’m an American. How about you? see, if we look beyond our political tribes, we can find shared identities and friendships that unite instead of divide.
Now third, can serve others. Service and volunteering help build up communities and improve our outlook on life and the around us. Some 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 was on to when he described and summed up the essence of life as: “Serve others and do good.”
Fourth, and finally, we can work to develop the classical political virtues of humility, patience moderation, without which, as John Adams explained, we all become ravenous beasts of prey. Now look, know it’s almost laughable to talk about words like humility political discourse, but I truly believe that it is the only way for us to remember how to disagree hate and contempt. In the words of Judge Learned Hand, who so eloquently stated, “The true of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure is right. The spirit of liberty is the spirit which seeks to understand the of other men and women.”
And I started with a quote from Ronald Reagan. He went on to say that freedom is not by way of inheritance. It must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes once to a people and those in history who have known freedom then lost it have never known it again. Ladies gentlemen, it is our solemn duty in our generation to once again secure the freedoms to all of us from on high. We cannot wait for politicians or the to do it. It will take real work, hard work by each us. But we must remember how to disagree without hate.
We rise up 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 a simple one. If we really want to change the world, we to start by changing our own hearts.
Thank you.
(Applause)