Episode 11

11 - Crossing Party Lines with Arielle Mizrahi & Matt Kuchem

Political polarization seems to continue to grow. Republicans and Democrats can't seem to find a way to compromise and work together (Just as Sen. James Lankford). Social media is filled with insults hurled towards political opponents and memes making fun of those with whom we disagree. What can be done?

Enter Unify America and the Bipartisan Policy Center. In this episode, Emily & James visit with Arielle Mizrahi of Unify America and Matt Kuchem from the Bipartisan Policy Center. They discuss the work they are doing to help bridge the divide between people and officials of opposing political views.

Emily has had her students participate in Unify America's "College Bowl" and James has been involved in the Bipartisan Partisan Center's "Campus Free Expression" project. We're big fans of both organizations and their missions. Find out what they think is creating so much division, and how we can overcome it.

To learn more about Unify American and find out how you can participate in one of their programs, go here: https://www.unifyamerica.org/

To follow the work of the Bipartisan Policy Center, go here: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/

To read the "Perception Gap" Study by More in Common that is discussed in this episode, go here: https://perceptiongap.us/

For more information about Arielle Mizrahi, click here: https://www.unifyamerica.org/team-members/arielle-mizrahi

For more information about Matt Kuchem, click here: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/person/matthew-kuchem/

To find out more about Dr. Emily Stacey, go here: https://www.rose.edu/staff/social-sciences-department/stacey-emily/

To find out more about Prof. James Davenport, go here: https://www.rose.edu/staff/social-sciences-department/davenport-james/

You can follow Not My Generation on X (Twitter) at @NMGpodcast and on Facebook at Not My Generation Podcast.

The views expressed here are solely the views of the hosts and do not represent the views of Rose State College, its administration, faculty, or students.

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Dr. Emily Stacey

Emily Stacey is a Political Science professor and Program Coordinator for Political Science at Rose State College. Dr. Stacey has the privilege of coordinating events, including the Great Debate panel series, Liberal Arts and Sciences colloquia, and the Political Science book club. Dr. Stacey was honored as a DaVinci Institute Fellow in 2023, an award given for innovative teaching in higher education. She successfully completed her dissertation defense in November 2016, and formally graduated with her doctorate in July 2017 from Swansea University (Wales, UK). Emily’s dissertation research focuses on the necessity of bureaucratization in contemporary social movements, namely those using digital technologies to mobilize and sustain dissent. She has participated in the Digital Methods Initiative at the University of Amsterdam (2013) and Oxford University’s Internet Institute Summer Doctoral Program (2014).



Emily has published multiple works thus far, Combatting Internet-Enabled Terrorism (2017), which focuses on the use of digital technologies and the internet by terror organizations, with emphasis on the Islamic State. Nationalism, Social Movements, and Activism in Contemporary Society was published in 2018, and analyzes the rising tide of nationalist politics around the world, with emphasis on U.S. politics (the rise of the Tea Party, election of Donald Trump and juxtaposing that against the Black Lives Matter movement). Emily’s most recent work (2023) focuses on deglobalization and the shifting world order. You can follow Emily on Twitter at: @politikphd.
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James Davenport

James Davenport is the Associate Dean for Social Sciences and a professor of political science at Rose State College. He is a two-time recipient of the Oklahoma Political Science Association's (OPSA) "Teacher of the Year" award and a recipient of OPSA's "Excellence in Public Service" award. He has also earned the Rose State College "Excellence in Teaching" award. He earned the "Excellence in Public Service" Award from the OPSA in 2023.
James brings practical experience in politics to his academic training as a political scientist. He has worked for a member of Congress, a county commissioner, a public opinion research firm, and owned a public relations and campaign consulting firm. In addition, he has also be the host of a radio talk show.
In 2023, James founded the Center for Civic Engagement, which fosters positive conversations on challenging issues and builds bridges of communication between the academic community, policy makers, and the general public.
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