Aspen Policy Academy

3 community members in Detroit have a lively conversation at a table at a Better Arguments event.

If We Are Going to Argue, Let’s Do It Right

  • Article Published December 6, 2019

This article was originally published on the CNN website on December 6, 2019.

By Caroline Hopper

Emerging from decades of economic and demographic decline, culminating in its 2013 bankruptcy, Detroit is now growing. As part of this growth, new businesses are moving in along with people attracted to the relatively low cost of living. And Detroiters are balancing the need to preserve the culture at the heart of the community’s identity and existence with positive investments and contributions that newcomers may bring.

The key to addressing this kind of division is to have better – not fewer – arguments. After all, argument is fundamental to any democracy, and limiting arguments can suppress needed deliberation. This is the premise of the Better Arguments Project, a collaboration among the Aspen Institute, Facing History and Ourselves, and Allstate.

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