How Do We Get Through This? — ANDREA MURASKIN

Democracy and rule of law are under threat in a way we haven’t seen in decades or perhaps centuries, and anger, fear, and division run deep. But if we look around the world, Americans can learn from countries that faced their own bitter divisions and came out on the other side with their democracies intact and strengthened based on shared values.

On How Do We Get Through This?, a podcast mini-series, from Beyond Conflict, host and peacebuilder Tim Phillips speaks with leaders from South Africa, Northern Ireland, and Venezuela, who were key to shaping their countries’ futures at times when everything was at stake.

I worked with Tim Phillips to develop this miniseries, and edited and produced all episodes.

EPISODES

How South Africa Avoided Civil War and Built a Democracy

The story of South Africa’s transition from Apartheid to democracy provides powerful lessons that Americans can apply to find common ground, re-humanize the “other” and safeguard our democratic system.

In the early 1990s South Africa was at a tipping point. Nelson Mandela and African National Congress were in tense negotiations with the ruling National Party to bring an end to the brutal Apartheid system. In 1994, the two sides emerged with a new constitution that established equal rights for all citizens, black and white, and the country held its first democratic election.

South Africa came close to civil war multiple times during those negotiations.

Our guests this episode sat across the negotiating table from one another. Mohammed Bhabha was a an attorney and activist in the ANC freedom struggle, and he went on to serve in parliament under Mandela. Roelf Meyer served in parliament and held top positions in the Apartheid government. Though they started as enemies, the hard-won trust they built helped shape the future of their country.

Get Closer to the People: The Foundation for Sustaining a Fragile Nation

A significant number of Americans believe that the “system” is broken and needs to be fixed, or upended. A majority of Americans also live paycheck to paycheck. This economic squeeze – a high cost of living without good jobs and wages to match – is happening in a time of rapid cultural and demographic change. A political environment like this provides rich material for demagogues to weaponize fear and anger.

Of course, the US is not the first country to face rising authoritarianism, political violence, and weaponized fear of others.

Roberto Patiño is a pro-democracy activist and mediator from Venezuela. Twenty percent of the country’s population – almost 8 million people – have left since 2014 amidst economic collapse, government repression, and gang violence.

Originally from Dublin, Avila Kilmurray moved to Northern Ireland in 1975 to work on poverty alleviation and women’s rights. For twenty years she served as the director of the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, building bridges and supporting community initiatives for Catholics and Protestants.

Great Hatred and Little Room: Building Peace in Northern Ireland

Monica McWilliams and Mike Nesbitt came of age in a deeply segregated society where politics were personal and violence was intimate. Like Americans today, our guests and their communities had to navigate living together in an atmosphere of deep mistrust.

Monica McWilliams is the Co-Founder of the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, a women’s political party that bridged the divide in her country. As a negotiator in the peace talks, McWilliams faced misogyny and anti-Catholic bias. She’s since served as an elected representative in Northern Ireland’s government and as Chief Commissioner for Human Rights, and she continues to work on social justice and peacebuilding in Northern Ireland and around the world.

Mike Nesbitt is the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party and the current Minister of Health for Northern Ireland. He covered the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and its aftermath as a broadcast journalist.