'A Nation Divided'

JOHNSON CITY – “A Nation Divided: Will We Stand or Fall?” is the theme of four free public events being held this week at East Tennessee State University as part of the seventh annual Civility Series.

Visiting the ETSU campus to help facilitate these events is David Blankenhorn, founder and president of Better Angels, a nonpartisan network of scholars and leaders whose vision is to reunite America.  He was previously president of the Institute for American Values, a think tank he also founded in 1988 focusing on civil society.  He writes regularly for The American Interest and is the author of “New York’s Promise,” “Thrift: A Cyclopedia,” “The Future of Marriage” and “Fatherless America.”

Better Angels works to stem the tide of political polarization in the United States by bringing liberals and conservatives together to understand each other beyond stereotypes, forming community alliances, teaching practical communication skills and making strong public arguments for depolarization.  The organization, which was launched in 2016, takes its name from a quote by Abraham Lincoln in his first inaugural address in 1861.

The four free public events in the “A Nation Divided” series, sponsored by ETSU’s Student Government Association and Office of Leadership and Civic Engagement, are:

• Debate: “Gun Control: A Civil Debate on a Loaded Topic,” Wednesday, March 21, 6-7:30 p.m., D.P. Culp University Center, dining room 2;
• Dialogue: “Bridging the Red-Blue Divide,” Thursday, March 22, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Culp Center, meeting room 2;
• Lecture: “Why Polarization Matters” by Blankenhorn, March 22, 7 p.m., Culp Center, ballroom; and
• Conversation: “Where Do We Go From Here?” with ETSU student leaders, Friday, March 23, 4-5:30 p.m., Culp Center, meeting room 6.

Two other Better Angels leadership team members will be on hand for portions of this series.  April Lawson, editorial assistant to columnists David Brooks and Ross Douthat at the New York Times, will serve as lead facilitator of the gun control debate, and Professor Virginia Bower, along with Blankenhorn, will moderate the “Red-Blue” dialogue.  Bower is an associate professor in the Department of Language and Literature at Mars Hill (North Carolina) University.

The Civility Series provides an opportunity for all of the campus community to join in making a conscious effort to ensure that civility and protection of human dignity is central to the campus culture.

For more information, contact Joy Fulkerson, assistant director of Leadership and Civic Engagement at ETSU, at 423-439-6633 or fulkersj@etsu.edu.  For disability accommodations, call the ETSU Office of Disability Services at 423-439-8346.