WHAT WE DON’T KNOW

A few days ago, my sister reminded me of something our dad used to say “You have to listen to the people on the other side of an issue if you are going to get anything done.”  That is exceptional advice that I have sometimes forgotten, especially in this 5 year political morass that is the Trump era.

As a blind person, I depend on listening to learn what I need to know.  I get no visual cues from any of the political or scientific figures of the time.  I don’t see Donald Trump and whatever physical characteristics are drawing people to him.  I did not see Hillary Clinton’s supposed boringness.  I don’t see “Sleepy Joe” as Donald ?Trump calls Joe Biden.  I do not see the expressions on the faces of the enthralled Trump supporters at rallies who always seem to be looking for a new 3-word chant (I hope that is not all their attention spans can handle (- OK, that was snarky, but it is my response to the vitriol I hear in every rally snippet I can tolerate listening to.  One can stand only so much hatred.  Why do those people like participating in the anger, fear and hatred? 

Yet, recalling my dad’s advice, listening to the other side is critical for understanding.  The biggest difficulty I have with this is that I know very few Trump supporters personally.  Those I do know are colleagues and we rarely mention politics in our work together as teachers.  I only know their politics because they wore Trump T-shirts the day after the election in 2016.  I was shocked, I must admit, but  have worked hard and been successful in not changing my opinion of them and their work because of this new knowledge.  What I know is that they are good teachers who care deeply for the kids they teach.

I listen to interviews with Trump supporters, a regular feature on NPR programs (my major news source) since 2015.  The Trump supporters come mostly from the “purple” states, usually from small town or rural communities.  They are nearly always white which makes sense since that is the vast majority of the Republican party.  They are sometimes asked why they support Donald Trump, but that is often the last adult question they are asked, and their childlike answers like “He understands me” or “He cares about my business,” are not expanded upon.   

The interviewed supporters go on and on about how their life was so bad under Obama and that even though it is bad now, Mr. Trump is going to make it better.  “Look at the stock market,” I heard one say.  The interviewer never asked how that impacted their life nor if that person was in the stock market.  It might be important to hear how these Americans get their information about the economy and what they think should happen related to themselves.  What will they do when they retire if Social Security is eliminated as many Republicans would like to do, for example.   

The interviewees are permitted to get away with saying things like “Well, I believe climate change is a hoax” with rarely a request for an explanation of how they know this or where they got such information. It could be helpful to know how they came to that understanding of what is happening in the world related to climate. What do they think will happen to them and their families as storms and floods become more intense as they will continue to do?  

Trump supporters are all against abortion, or that’s what they say.  They are not asked about this position, they just get to declare it.  They are not asked if it is a problem for them that rich White women will always be able to get an abortion, but what they are fighting for is to keep that procedure from poor people.  Such a question and response would help us pro-choice women to understand something of their thinking.  We know what the anti-choice leaders think because they are loud and often pretty obnoxious, but do their followers hold the same beliefs for the same reasons and in all situations? 

The Trump supporters interviewed are assumed to be conservatives, and they will say “I’m pretty conservative,” but they are not pressed as to what that means to them.  What is their understanding of who “conservatives” are and what they believe.  What do they think “liberals” are/believe?  

It is as though despite their screaming and chanting in Trump’s rallies, his supporters are actually delicate people who can’t be talked to as adults that can form their own arguments and present their own positions.  This is not the way to “listen” to the other side.  This is the way women and people of color have been treated throughout history.  White people, men in particular are the ones with the knowledge and the worthy opinions while the rest of the world is expected to parrot whatever those mostly men say, and to believe it in whole.  “That is the way to get along in this unequal world.” 

Well, it needs to stop. The media needs to do better.  It is through examining our beliefs that we learn if these are actually our own thoughts or those of someone else.  If no one who differs in world view from ourselves ever challenges us, we may not get the chance to truly develop our understanding of where we stand on the important issues that impact our lives.  We can become extremely angry with where we are in life.  If we aren’t expected to know who we are and what we ourselves believe, we can blame others for our “misfortunes.”

I will not tell you this is easy, but it is worth the trouble.  Listening to people who are honestly discussing where they stand is not the same as listening to political ads that claim to be presenting “real” people.  Those are paid actors who are spouting a script given to them.  Journalists, if careful and diligent, can make a difference and can empower all kinds of people to have more personal agency. 

So, journalists, get to work and interview adults who can communicate their thinking.  They will do better if you can push them into explanations that will lead to understanding, theirs and ours.  Stop treating Trump supporters like children.  That is insulting and does not contribute to understanding.  It does not help us to know what we don’t know.