IKE Box and Isaac’s Café has invited the newly formed Braver Angels of Salem group to hold monthly Coffee Talks to help nurture civility and open sharing of ideas on thorny topics. “The event is free, and everyone interested in creating more peace in our community is welcome,” said Satya Chandragiri, a physician, psychiatrist, and also a founding member of the local Braver Angels group.
The first of these Coffee Talks will take place at IKE Box (299 Cottage St. NE) on Friday, January 24, 2025, from 5:30 – 7 p.m. The topic: Is Polarization Always a Bad Thing?
Fashioned after the successful Bipartisan Café in Portland, these Coffee Talks will allow for “safe, civil and courteous exchanges of ideas on a range of issues,” said Chandragiri. The monthly gatherings will be facilitated by a trained Braver Angel member each time.
“After briefly introducing the topic of the day, and establishing guidance for small group discussion, we will encourage people to sit with those they don’t know and engage in open conversation, speaking honestly and listening to others without judgment,” he continued. “At the end, each group will be invited to share with the larger assembly what they discovered. Our hope is that the gatherings will be starting points for civil and courteous exchanges of ideas, a place where trust and respect will take root.”
“An abundance of inflammatory rhetoric has caused us to forget who we are as a people and as a country,” Chandragiri added, “and yet there is much that binds us together as neighbors and Americans. Nothing can cement a community better than its members demonstrating understanding and tolerance for those whose views differ from our own.”
The requirement of each local Braver Angels steering group is to have equal representation of conservatives and liberals. “In forming the Salem group, we have already experienced the value of working closely with people who have distinct political views,” said Chandragiril, who is the “red” (conservative leaning) co-chair of the group. “In fact, we’ve quickly come to realize that we share many of the same core human values, despite our seeing different solutions to political and social issues.”
The Salem group is part of a growing network of more than 110 Braver Angels alliances in all but seven states. The Coffee Talks will encourage participants to become part of the growing local Braver Angels membership.
The intention of the national nonprofit, founded in 2016, is to “bring Americans together to bridge the partisan divide and strengthen our democratic republic,” according to the Braver Angels website.
You may also download the flier for this event.
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