Our Origins

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At my high school, located in the most politically motivated city in the country, conversation often turns into an echo chamber. The liberal majority, strong willed and well informed, often rejects viewpoints that differ from their own. This results in conservative students being bashed and harshly criticized for their views, forcing them either into a place of silence or feeling as though they must prove the validity of their views to the rest of the student body. The 2016 election exacerbated this issue and left me questioning the ability of my peers to engage in productive dialogue. Learn to Listen was founded the summer after my sophomore year when I attended the Leadership Institute at Brown University. I was inspired to model my action plan to combat the recurring problem I had noticed at my school of lack of political open-mindedness. 

The goal of my action plan is to create respectful and productive dialogue between liberal and conservative students that, through greater understanding, will lead to a long lasting tolerant relationship. The alienation of students of any belief system that differ from ours within the school community is dangerous as it limits our own understanding of what we ourselves believe in as well as our ability to defend our views. Learn to Listen aim to create a space where individuals with political beliefs on any end of the spectrum can have civil discussion. This is beneficial because if all groups feel respected and heard, there is no need for dramatized or obnoxious behavior when exercising freedom of speech. Catherine Rampell from The Washington Post remarks that “censorship tends to generate more public interest”, revealing the counter productivity of subduing your opponents.