Resources
Session Four: July 8, 2008
Colliding Over Politics: Are We So Divided?
How to frame questions that won't divide
The following is a list of questions that participants drafted in response to issues that could either divide people, or help create constructive dialogue. Participants chose issues and then thought about how to initiate dialogue. The questions featured below are called "Value Questions" and serve to open up constructive dialogue. Participants learned how to differentiate between Value Questions and "For or Against" questions, which put people in an either/or position and can lead to arguments and divisiveness. The key to Value Questions is to get at the values behind the opinions, not to ask questions that categorize people and box them in, possibly leading to defensiveness and arguments.
Environment
- What is a place in the world that is personally important to you and what can you do to protect it?
- What should our policies be in the US and globally?
- What is the area where we can have impact?
- How do we get people out in the environment to see it without SUVs and planes destroying it? (People seeing it are more apt to get involved and emotionally invested.)
- How do we get people to respect the environment?
- What natural resources do you want to leave your children?
- What part of the environment if threatened/endangered would you defend?
- What is your environmental legacy?
- How do you think the different generations think about the environment?
- What can we do to help save the environment?
- What can I personally do to influence public policy for my company? State? Country?
- What motivates you to reduce, reuse or recycle?
- How have you used your dollars (via how and where you spend) to influence corporate policy and behaviors?
- What are the roles and responsibilities of individuals, companies and the international community in preserving our environment?
Ageism
- How does age affect a candidate's competence and ability to serve as president?
- What are the physical, mental emotional and spiritual demands of the presidency?
- How do you assess a candidate's strength in a candidate's ability to serve?
- How important is experience in a candidate's ability to serve as president?
- Do you think there should be age restrictions on presidential candidates?
- How do popular stereotypes about McCain as a vet and older impact the election?
Race and the election
- Is race more important than values?
- How do values transcend race?
- What are the values that a president should have? And how does race affect those values?
- How should race play a role in setting public policy?
- How can race be used to unify a country?
- If I vote for one or another, does that make it racist?
- Why should candidates' views be more important than race?
- How does Obama being the Democratic candidate help McCain?
- What values/perspectives do Obama and McCain share?
- In the privacy of the voting booth, how important do you think Obama's race is?
- How do popular stereotypes about Obama and race impact the election?
- What do you think McCain really thinks about Obama's race?
- What values do you think the election of Obama would represent?
- Do you think ethnicity/racism has a role in the '08 election?
- How has Obama overcome racism to this point?
- What's different with this election, than any previous election?
- How do you engage people across all barriers - age, race, gender?
- How has racism affected the campaign?
- Has our country come full circle when it comes to race?
- How important is it that we understand what the candidates stand for?
- How do our life experiences influence our views on the race or ethnicity of a particular candidate?
CEFCA
- How can it be done on a global scale?
- What is it that employees want to be represented on by employer/union?
- How do we educate employees about secret ballot?
- Will the union meet the need that employees have?
- Will this receive enough votes to pass?
- What are issues that would cause employees to wait to be unionized?
- What value do you see in the process; what are the pros/cons of union/non-union?
- What do you see as the value of unions?
Sexism in the 2008 campaign
- How dependent is good leadership on the gender of the politician?
- How did gender play a role in the 2008 primary campaign?
- What is sexism?
- Regardless of gender, what are the strengths and values you'd like to see in a candidate?
- What is relevant about a candidate's fashion sense relative to their candidacy?
- Do you feel the different demographic groups that support Hillary Clinton share similar values?
Corporate policies
- What are three good things about policies you currently think are negative?
- If you were hired to put together a winning strategy for a political party, what would you advise them to do?
- How do you create a safe space to maintain participation level for everyone?
- What is the mix of consequences for Boeing as a result f the Iraq war?
Iraq
- What is your vision for success in Iraq?
Session Four was the fourth session of the 2008 NW Diversity Learning Series, Leveraging the Tensions of Diversity: Igniting Sparks of Opportunity. The Series, held in Seattle, WA, is organized by The GilDeane Group, publishers of DiversityCentral.com.
Presenter was Carolyn Lukenmeyer, President and Founder of AmericaSpeaks: Engaging Citizens in Government, Washington, D.C.
Session Six: Thu, Nov 13, 2008
Confronting Global Diversity: Imagining a Wide Circle of Inclusion
Patricia Digh
David Robinson