Events
All events are free and open to the public, unless specified otherwise. Minnesota events. are listed below. To find a national event, visit the Events Calendar on the national Braver Angels website. The national BA events calendar offers in-person and online events, and can be searched by date and location. Registration links go to Eventbrite, a service that lists events and manages registrations.
Upcoming events and activities in Minnesota
Skills for Disagreeing Better workshops
In this polarized time, we lack basic understanding of why people on the other political side hold their beliefs. We don’t see them as they see themselves–their core values and central concerns–but instead as we choose to see them. We are tempted to regard our own side as principled and the other side as self-interested.
When we try to communicate across this gap, we often lack the skills for listening carefully, looking for common ground, and sharing our perspectives in ways that connect rather than create more misunderstanding.
We can learn to disagree better in polarized times, which means accurately seeing where we differ and where we share common ground.
We can learn to disagree better in polarized times, which means accurately seeing where we differ and where we share common ground in this 90-minute workshop. Goals for Participants
More understanding of the values and concerns of people who differ from you politically
Better skills for listening in a way so that the other person feels heard
Better skills for sharing viewpoints in a way the other person might hear — even if they disagree
Thursday, September 19, 6-7:30 pm (In-person)
Host: Our Savior's Lutheran Church
9185 Lexington Avenue North, Circle Pines, MN 55014
Register: Skills for Disagreeing Better
Thursday, September 19, 7-8:30 pm (In-person)
Host: St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
920 Holly Ave., St. Paul Park
Register: Skills for Disagreeing Better
Monday, September 23, 6:30-8 pm (In-person)
Hosts: Braver Angels and League of Women Voters of Park Rapids Area
Northwoods Bank
1200 First Street East, Park Rapids, MN 56470
Register: Skills for Disagreeing Better
Saturday, September 28, 9-11 am (In-person)
Hosts: City of Cologne and Carver County Public Health Department
Cologne City Hall, 1221 Village Parkway, Cologne, MN 55322
Register: Skills for Disagreeing Better
Tuesday, September 17, 5-7:30pm (Pre-requisite online component and in-person component)
Skills for Social Media
Host: MN State Alliance
Partner: Dakota County Library - Inver Glen Library
Register: Skills for Social Media
This workshop focuses on Braver Angels communication skills for people who engage in political conversation on social media.
Prerequisite: All participants must have completed the 40 minute Skills for Social Media E-course PRIOR to attending the workshop.
The Need: Social Media posts are often highly polarizing. Skills for Social Media is an online workshop designed to improve the culture of posts and conversations in social media and provide a constructive alternative to the polarized and judgmental exchanges that dominate the current online discourse. This can lead to more productive conversations and maybe joint action with people of all political leanings.
Format: A free online workshop for practicing Braver Angels communication skills on social media. The focus is on skills for people who choose to engage in conversation about politics on social media, not on the societal impact of social media.
Goals for Participants
You develop new skills so that you can avoid contributing to polarization in your social media use.
You develop new skills for addressing difficult situations on social media.
You can engage others in a constructive, depolarizing manner on social media.
Monday, Sept.23, 7-8:30 pm (in-person)
Ballots and Beliefs: A Cross-ideological Discussion on Absentee and Mail Voting
Host: Twin Cities East Metro Alliance
Jerry’s Foods, 7760 Hargis Pkwy, Woodbury, MN 55129
Register: Ballots and Beliefs
Join us for a deep dive into the world of absentee and mail ballots. This 90-minute session will focus on the benefits and challenges of these voting methods, with a particular emphasis on the conservative viewpoint. We’re eager to hear your insights and concerns. This session aims to sharpen your understanding, help you articulate your views clearly, and prepare you for informed discussions on this critical issue. Attached is a list of resources and news reports from across the political spectrum to stimulate your thinking if you have a chance to review before we meet.
Wednesday, Sept. 25, 5-8 pm (in-person)
Depolarizing Within
Host: Northern MN Alliance
Partner: University of Wisconsin Superior
University of Wisconsin Superior - Yellowjacket Union
1605 Catlin Ave
Superior, WI 54880
Register: Depolarizing Within
Polarization can be driven by how we talk with like-minded people about those on the other side. Too often, we stereotype, dismiss, or ridicule our fellow citizens who support the other political party, its leaders, and its policies.
This free 3 hour workshop teaches participants:
How to be more aware of their own “inner polarizer”
How to be critical without demonizing, dismissing or stereotyping large swaths of the population
How to constructively intervene in polarizing social conversations with like-minded people.
Who can come? Anyone interested in examining their own inner polarization and learning strategies to disagree without condemning or ridiculing others.
Thursday, Oct. 3, 5:30-7:30 (In-person)
Depolarizing Ourselves
In partnership with MPR's Talking Sense Initiative
Thursday, October 3 · 5:30-7:30pm (In-person)
Fergus Brewing Company
1683 Ottertail Drive Fergus Falls, MN 56537
Register: Depolarizing Ourselves
Doors open and complimentary food with registration will be served at 5:30 pm. The workshop will begin at 6:00 pm. Each registration also comes with a free drink. What this workshop is about: Polarization is fueled by how we talk about those on the other side of an issue. Too often, we ridicule, dismiss, or stereotype our fellow citizens. When Braver Angels addresses “polarization,” we are not referring to healthy disagreements over issues or philosophy. We are addressing how we regard and talk about large groups of people -- people who happen to be on the other side of the political aisle. In this 1.5 hour session participants will learn:
How to be more aware of their own “inner polarizer”
How to be critical without demonizing, dismissing or stereotyping large swaths of the population
Tuesday, Oct. 8, 5-8 pm
Mónica Guzmán - Reception and Fireside Chat
Host: University of Wisconsin, Superior, WI
Tuesday, Oct. 8 - Reception and book-signing 5-5:45 pm; Fireside chat 6:15-8 pm
Yellowjacket Union Great Room
This event is open to the public and for UW-Superior faculty, staff and students on a first-come, first-served basis. Please register only if you plan to attend, out of consideration for our community’s resources and interest.
Mónica Guzmán is a bridge builder, journalist, and entrepreneur who lives for great conversations sparked by curious questions. She's author of I Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times; founder and CEO of Reclaim Curiosity; Senior Fellow for Public Practice at Braver Angels; and host of A Braver Way podcast.
For more information and to register, see the Mónica Guzmán flyer (PDF)
Braver Angels workshops are typically free events as part of our mission to depolarize America. Braver Angels is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. We invite you to consider a gift to Braver Angels; all donations are tax deductible. Your support will allow us to offer more workshops and debates with the ultimate goal of uniting America. To donate to Minnesota Braver Angels, click here.