One of the most common concerns I hear is that our democracy is in trouble. I hear it in regard to election security from people who lean right. I hear it regarding Jan. 6 from people who lean left. I hear it from people in higher education as they complain that everyone is so angry these days. During one conversation, I suggested that this is exactly what democracy is — an angry mob of people who think they know better than everyone else. I mean, isn’t that why both Aristotle and Winston Churchill thought it was a bad idea? But, you know, it’s better than the alternative, so here we are.

When I was in college in the 1990s, everyone talked about how the biggest danger to democracy was apathy — how nobody was paying attention and, as a result, our nation was going to die. If more people cared, the world would be a much better place. They’d be amazed at where we are today and how much everyone cares. Politics is the sexiest thing to talk about right now — so much so that Elon Musk spent $44 billion to buy the political public square. To a certain extent, this is the golden age of democracy because everyone is paying attention. Then why are we all so worried?

I think the problem, really, is that people always think democracy is dying, as though democracy were a goal that you achieve and, once achieved, the work is done. But that is the wrong understanding of democracy. Democracy is a verb. As Benjamin Franklin said, it’s “a republic, if you can keep it.” The citizenry has to keep the nation, which means you have to work at it. Democracy is the 10 pounds you are always trying to lose and, when you finally do lose it, you have to work to keep it off. Democracy is a habit and it requires practice.

To that end, I require my students to do some personal training in deliberative democracy. In September and October of this year, 1,448 students from 45 colleges across the country participated in the Unify Challenge College Bowl. If you’re feeling you need some practice and are interested in trying this challenge, go to unifyamerica.org and sign up. Unify America asks people to participate in a conversation with a total stranger assigned by political identity. If you identify as a bleeding-heart liberal, you’re paired with a traditional conservative. Then you and your partner go through a series of statements about the economy, health care, immigration, criminal justice, the environment, politics and society. You say how much you agree or disagree with a statement, and then you discuss your responses.

Every semester, I require my students to participate and then write an essay about this experience. Other than the one student whose partner thought she was pretty and it got kind of awkward as he flirted with her, every single student has enjoyed the experience. They love talking with people from Texas, Ohio, Florida and more about issues that seem cut-and-dry to them, but are completely different for other people. As it turns out, it’s not just being political opposites that creates differences of opinion; the part of the country in which you were born and raised can have an effect too. They also talk about the preconceived notions they had about who they would be talking with, and how interesting it was that the person was not the caricature they thought they would be.

You might be surprised that these young people — almost all of them between the ages of 18 and 25 — found consensus on 12 out of 17 political issues. This means they came to agreement on issues that nobody wants to talk about at Thanksgiving dinner. Seventy-four percent of them said participating in the challenge made it easier for them to talk about political issues; 54% said that the Unify Challenge gave them a better understanding that people who vote differently have good reasons for doing so; and 78% were more hopeful about the future of the country after participating.

Do you know why they’re more hopeful? Because they figured out that this is democracy — that keeping the republic is talking to your political rival. Not being persuaded by them, but talking to them — keeping in your mind’s eye that they can believe what they believe, and you can disagree with them, but we’re all still valuable citizens of this republic. It’s hard. But the good things always are hard, and this republic is worth the work.

Leah Murray is a Brady Distinguished Presidential Professor of Political Science and the academic director of the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service at Weber State University.

Newsletter