Dr. Harrison will focus on effective communication with our political opponents. How can democracy survive if we can’t even talk to each other? What is a practical approach to useful conversations on contentious issues?

Dr. Brian F. Harrison earned his Ph.D. at Northwestern University. He has been a Visiting Assistant Professor at Macalester College and Lecturer at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. His prior affiliations include Northwestern, Yale, NYU, and Wesleyan Universities; before academia, Brian was a White House appointee for the Department of Homeland Security. He is Founder and President of Voters for Equality, an organization encouraging political engagement among LGBTQ people in the U.S. He has published LGBTQ Life in America: Examining the Facts (ABC-CLIO, 2021, with Melissa Michelson) and 3 books with Oxford University Press: A Change is Gonna Come: How to Have Effective Political Conversations in a Divided America (2020); Transforming Prejudice: Identity, Fear, and Transgender Rights (2020); and Listen, We Need to Talk: How to Change Attitudes about LGBT Rights (2017). An award-winning teacher and author, Dr. Harrison’s interests are in American politics, political communication and political behavior, political psychology, public opinion, and LGBT rights.

Events are free, live or by Zoom. Tickets are not necessary but registration is helpful. The live event is held a the Ludington Area Center for the Arts (LACA) at 107 S Harrison St in downtown Ludington. To register: mcdl.pub/sl-register. To simply join the Zoom presentation, go to mcdl.pub/sl-zoom. The link will be live about 6:45 pm on the day of the presentation. For information check the Mason County District Library website: mcdlibrary.org.