{"id":340933,"date":"2024-10-18T11:00:06","date_gmt":"2024-10-18T15:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenvillejournal.com\/?p=340933"},"modified":"2024-10-17T15:56:10","modified_gmt":"2024-10-17T19:56:10","slug":"student-op-ed-lets-heal-division-through-curiosity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenvillejournal.com\/op-ed\/letter-to-the-editor\/student-op-ed-lets-heal-division-through-curiosity\/","title":{"rendered":"Student op-ed: Let\u2019s heal division through curiosity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: This op-ed was the winner of an annual writing competition organized by The Riley Institute<\/a> at Furman University. The competition was judged by Furman University staff and a representative of Community Journals.<\/em><\/p>\n

You\u2019re dining with a family member that you always disagree with on politics. They throw out an opinion, and all of a sudden you\u2019re in a full-fledged heated debate, Trump-Harris style. It\u2019s discouraging, but it\u2019s nothing new in an age of division that is just as palpable within our own families as it is in\u00a0Congress<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Why is it so hard to talk to people we love about issues upon which we disagree? In an interview with The Wall Street Journal<\/a>, psychologist Jeanne Safer pointed out that it\u2019s our psychological differences that bother us.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a fantasy that people who are our intimates are going to be like us in every fundamental way. We wonder: How can somebody important to me not see what I see?\u201d<\/p>\n

In order to improve these conversations, we can start by looking for lower-stakes opportunities for conversation. By saving the more controversial topics for people that aren\u2019t as central to our lives, we can avoid jeopardizing important relationships.<\/p>\n

Next, we must reframe these conversations for learning, with your one goal being to understand the opposing beliefs. This can transform grounds for war into fertile ground for empathy. Importantly, once you have more knowledge about why these beliefs exist, you can use it to better understand your loved ones.<\/p>\n

The echo chambers in which we reside perpetuate a dangerous intolerance for the other side \u2014 but as college students, we have an opportunity to escape them.<\/p>\n

Unlike our hometowns in which we are insulated by similar beliefs, college provides the opportunity to meet, talk to and befriend people that challenge us and offer low-stakes opportunities to discuss different ideologies. It\u2019s a place to practice being quick to ask questions, and slow to argue.<\/p>\n

Undoubtedly, some of my political conversations at college have been frustrating. But since I\u2019ve started implementing these strategies, these discussions have become more enlightening than destructive. They have helped me learn how to prioritize curiosity over being right.<\/p>\n

In her 2017 book\u00a0\u201cBraving the Wilderness,\u201d<\/a>\u00a0author Bren\u00e9 Brown famously suggested the idea, \u201cPeople are hard to hate close up. Move in.\u201d<\/p>\n

During our four precious years of growth and socialization, let\u2019s move into curiosity. Let\u2019s move into empathy. Let\u2019s move into relationships that challenge our beliefs to decentralize political ideologies from our love for others, so that we as young people may dream of a future wherein we are marching toward change together.<\/p>\n

Audrey Enghauser is a communication studies major and poverty studies minor at Furman University, and editor-in-chief of the university\u2019s student newspaper, The Paladin.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

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