Embracing unity is like exercise: A great and noble idea, but difficult and all too easy to forego. Yet the history of American democracy has proven that in extraordinary moments of unity, Americans can accomplish extraordinary things.
The Unity Project hosted a panel of experts with backgrounds in counseling, psychiatry, socioeconomics and conflict resolution to provide expert advice on coping with community trauma, supporting friends, family and colleagues, processing these events and affecting change as individuals and community members.
American democracy in the 21st century is struggling amid deep polarization. While disagreement is democracy’s oxygen, not since the Civil War have so many Americans held such radically opposed views not just of politics but of reality itself. The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy, working in concert with the university’s world-class faculty, will elevate the role of research and evidence-based reasoning into the national conversation. Drawing on original content anchored on facts and evidence, the Project seeks to make a meaningful contribution to bridging America’s deepest differences. The Project aims to inform thinking and reframe public discourse through the following initial themes:
Delve into our original research, panels, and content more here:
Former Governor of Tennessee
Former White House Fellow and Research Professor of Political Science and Law
Carolyn T. and Robert M. Rogers Chair in American Presidency