How a Des Moines nonprofit seeks to bridge our partisan divides
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People conversing at a Lyceum event in Des Moines. Photo: Courtesy of Lyceum Movement
As partisan divides grow stronger leading up to the 2024 election, the Lyceum Movement, a local nonprofit in Des Moines, believes our estrangements can be bridged.
Why it matters: Increased polarization coincides with reports of more loneliness and mental health issues.
- The Lyceum Movement hopes to address and counter both problems through grassroots, community events aimed at finding common ground.
State of play: Call it loneliness, isolationism or tribalism, but today's circumstances make it easier than ever to avoid people unlike us, says Nathan Beacom, the group's founder and executive director.
- Social media, cable news and politicians are incentivized to attract people towards inflammatory rhetoric, he said.
- Meanwhile, excessive cell phone use can reduce emotional connections and face-to-face interactions.
Zoom in: In August, Lyceum Movement will hold a "Festival of Ideas" at The Shop downtown focused on bigger topics everyone can relate to, such as "What is the meaning of family?" and "Why it's getting harder to make friends."
The big picture: There's a growing movement of nonprofits dedicated to brainstorming and trying to dampen the partisan divide across the country.
- And while there may be no reconciliation between "Trump-branded conservatism" and the political left — the focus should be on the "exhausted" majority of Americans that can still find common ground, the New York Times writes.
Reality check: Talking about our differences is getting tougher in multiple areas.
- Iowa lawmakers have banned diversity programs in public colleges and LGBTQ instruction in elementary schools is in legal limbo, for example.
Zoom out: Nationwide, there's a particularly evident partisan divide over schools — Republicans reported 30% satisfaction with K-12 schools last year, down from 53% in 2003, according to Gallup.
- Meanwhile, Democrats' satisfaction has increased during the same time period, from 44 to 51%.
What's next: The Lyceum Movement wants to reach more rural areas after having expanded into Jefferson.