Tennessee friends discuss bridging ideological divides in TED Talk discussion
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Clint Brewer and Samar Ali talk at a TED event in November. Photo: Ryan Lash/courtesy of TED
In the midst of another contentious election season, two Tennesseans from vastly different backgrounds say their friendship is an example of how to bridge our country's deep divides.
State of play: Vanderbilt University law professor Samar Ali, who works to defuse hate and division through her nonprofit Millions of Conversations, recently filmed a TED Talk video with Clint Brewer, managing partner of the Nashville-based public affairs consulting firm Imperium Public Strategies.
Zoom out: Ali and Brewer met while working in former Gov. Bill Haslam's administration and have been friends for more than 10 years despite their opposing political views and different backgrounds.
Ali was raised in Waverly, Tennessee. She said growing up in the rural town as a Muslim child of immigrants set the stage for her work as a peacemaker.
- She faced hate and death threats throughout her time working for the state and federal governments.
- Her organization seeks to combat misinformation and restore trust through events encouraging civil conversations about topics such as Islamophobia, politics and gun culture, among other efforts.
Brewer grew up in the Knoxville area and spent 15 years as a journalist before moving into government and ultimately co-founding his public affairs firm.
- He said he sees his work as an effort to "bridge the divides between people" through communication.
The big picture: During their talk, the pair discussed the ever-increasing political rancor in the United States.
- "This is contributing to a trust deficit, a trust deficit between neighbors, we're all feeling it — between neighbors, between family and friends, between citizens and democracy," Ali said.
Zoom in: Sometimes, they said, their disagreements kept them from speaking for months at a time. But they agreed continuing to come together was important.
- "Even though we don't see eye to eye, Clint helps strengthen what I'm thinking," Ali said. "It makes us better."
The bottom line: The pair said that fighting back against division could start with something as simple as chatting with a neighbor who has different opinions.
- "It's really easy to be polarized if it remains in the abstract and the other side of whatever side you're on is not humanized," Brewer said.