It’s our last podcast episode of the year, so today we wanted to leave you with a broader view of community and our shared humanity. We talked to Dr. Nichole Argo, a social psychologist and the author of The Belonging Barometer: The State of Belonging in America. She’s also the host of a new podcast called Reimagining Us.

But before Rachel’s chat with Dr. Nichole, she and Jasmine did cover some of the more unsettling news of the week - like the threat of RFK Jr. revoking the polio vaccine (really, polio??), TIME choosing Trump as their “person of the year,” and ABC settling their defamation lawsuit with Trump for 15 million dollars.

We’re all worried about what will happen over the next four years, and with good reason. But the first rule of resisting authoritarianism, as seen in Timothy Snyder’s On Tyranny, is “don’t obey in advance.” We’re disheartened by the preemptive obedience we’re seeing (we’re looking at you, ABC) and you can rest assured that here at Red Wine & Blue, we’re doing no such thing.

Resistance, however, doesn’t mean widening the divisions between ourselves and our fellow Americans. It’s no secret that political polarization is worse than it’s been in a long time. Dr. Nichole says that in the past, we used to see disagreements as a positive thing - prompting introspection and innovation. Now, many Americans see any disagreement as evidence that their opponent is an evil villain who must be defeated. If we want that to change, we have to be a part of the solution too.

It won’t be easy, and none of us will be able to manage it all the time. But Dr. Nichole reminded us that building bridges doesn’t mean obeying in advance. We can stand firm on our values and try to reconnect with our neighbors’ humanity.

It’s a real tightrope walk, but we can’t think of anyone more equipped to pull it off than suburban women.

If you want to support Red Wine & Blue as we build community and stand up against extremism in 2025, please donate here. Have a restful two weeks and we'll see you in January!

For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected].

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