A More Perfect Union

A New Vision for Building the Beloved Community
By Adam Russell Taylor
Recommended by: Bob
Publisher: Broadleaf Books

Thinking about alternatives is an important part of the One Million Rising training. In the words of the president of Sojourners, Adam Russell Taylor, whom I heard speak recently, to build a “more perfect union,” we need to be focusing on three priorities: Blocking, Bridging, and Building. We are focused a lot on Blocking bad things happening, but have little power to do that. In the future, we can work on Bridging, but that will take a very long time and will entail millions of one-on-one relationships.

Builders

Rise Above US vs Them. Be a Builder

Recommended by: Bob B. – “Builders Movement, was launched by Starts With Us, and supported by Kind founder, Daniel Lubetsky.”

Our mission is to overcome “us vs. them” thinking and solve problems together. We equip people to uncover hidden common ground and build on it – with lasting solutions that reflect the will of the people.

Find Common Ground and Build Real Solutions Together

If enough people adopt a Builders Mindset, we can replace our toxic “us vs. them” culture with one of curiosity, compassion, courage, and creative innovation.

It won’t be easy. The incentives in our media, social algorithms, and politics reward and amplify the conflict entrepreneurs working overtime to divide, diminish, and destroy.

Our approach is to reach and teach people at scale with powerful content, equip them with new skills and innovative tools, and mobilize the growing Builders movement with grassroots civic programs to hold political leaders accountable for being Builders.

Practicing the 4Cs Daily

The Builders mindset is rooted in the 4Cs: curiosity, compassion, courage, and creativity. By adopting these values as daily habits, we promote flexible thinking, constructive problem solving, and respecting the dignity of all people.

It’s time to take action. Join us. Be a Builder.


News Feed

  • We’re Launching a Get-Out-The-Vote Campaign Inspired by Texas’s Strangest and Most Beloved Mascot: The Armadillo In Texas, we have a state mammal that tells the whole story. When threatened, the armadillo rolls up into a tight little ball. Head down. Feet tucked in. Wait it out. It’s exactly what too many Texans do every primary… The post Don’t Roll Over, Texas appeared first on Builders.
  • Voting based on who will actually govern effectively is hard. It requires asking questions that go deeper than party labels, campaign slogans, and who “won” the last debate. If you’re tired of representatives who perform for their base instead of solving problems, here are five questions to ask before you cast your vote. These aren’t… The post 5 Questions to Ask Before You Vote appeared first on Builders.
  • Politics seeps into everything now, and if you’re dating or married to someone who votes differently from you, it can feel impossible to navigate. Some couples can’t make it work. A 5,000-person survey found that one in six Americans has ended or considered ending a relationship because of political differences. But others have figured out how… The post From the Inbox: Couples Who Disagree Politically Tell Us How They Stay Together appeared first on Builders.
  • The Real Election in Texas Often Happens in March, Not November In Texas, most legislative races are already decided before November even arrives. The primary election in March is where your actual representative gets chosen.  Due to gerrymandering and partisan sorting, the vast majority of Texas districts are “locked-in” for one party, meaning whichever candidate… The post Primary Elections 101: How to Actually Make a Difference in Texas Politics appeared first on Builders.
  • Every Election Day in November, we treat the ballot box like the main event. And sure, picking leaders then matters. But the real shaping of our democracy happens months earlier, in the quieter, low-turnout world of primary elections. That’s where the choices on the November ballot are made, and where most voters opt out, with… The post Voting in the Primaries Is the Most Important Thing You Can Do for Democracy — and You Probably Aren’t Doing It appeared first on Builders.
  • Accountability Must Apply to the DHS and Citizens Alike There is a lyric in Hamilton that is haunting right now. A loyalist to the King of England warns, “Chaos and bloodshed are not a solution. Don’t let them lead you astray.” Following the tragic killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis by federal law enforcement, words… The post Minneapolis Doesn’t Need More Chaos—Here’s What It Needs Instead appeared first on Builders.
  • Texas is big. It’s got big land. Big personality. And big contradictions. Nowhere is that more evident than in the way urban and rural communities are positioned against each other. You’ve seen it in every election cycle, every social media argument, every news segment that needs a convenient villain. Cities are portrayed as liberal cesspools… The post How Politicians Manipulate the Urban-Rural Divide in Texas—and How We Can Push Back appeared first on Builders.
  • We live in a world where everyone has an opinion on everything, and far too many of those opinions are formed in about three seconds based on a headline or a tweet. That’s not thinking—that’s reacting. Real thinking, the kind that actually helps you understand complicated issues instead of just picking a side, takes more… The post The Missing Tool for Tackling Tough Problems: Value-Based Analysis appeared first on Builders.
  • The power of flexible thinking—and how to practice it daily We rarely find solutions by winning an argument. It comes from finding the thin strip of common ground where people with different beliefs decide to work together anyway.  We saw this firsthand in our Citizen Solutions session in Austin, Texas. Participants came from very different… The post The Future Belongs to People Who Can Change Their Minds appeared first on Builders.
  • As Texas settles into one of its coldest stretches of the year, Texans are once again nervously eyeing their thermostats and wondering if the grid will withstand the rest of the winter. In February 2021, Winter Storm Uri showed just how bad grid failure can get. Millions of Texans lost power when temperatures dropped, and… The post Texas Fixed Its Power Grid. Now a New Threat Is Testing It. appeared first on Builders.
  • Satisfaction with democracy is deep in the hole. Only 34% of Americans are satisfied with how democracy is working in the U.S., according to a 2025 Gallup poll. Overall, Americans’ satisfaction with democracy has been in steady decline from its peak of 60% in the mid-1980s.  This persistent disillusionment has given rise to the idea… The post Here’s Why Only One-Third Of Americans Think Democracy Is Working in the U.S. appeared first on Builders.
  • Your year-end gift helps turn common ground into real-world change—equipping Builders across the country to replace division with solutions. Is it just me, or did 2025 feel like 3 years compressed into one? As I look at the remaining days on the calendar, I am struck by the sweeping changes, from a new administration right… The post The Moment Is Urgent. The Future Is Ours to Build. appeared first on Builders.

How to Citizen with Baratunde

By Baratunde Thurston

Recommended by: Bob

Here are some sources of ideas from a podcast by Baratunde Thurston, which began in 2020 and has four seasons of episodes. The overall theme is encouraging thinking about “citizen” as a verb. The four
pillars for doing this are:

  • To participate, not just vote, but to show up for each other and publicly participate by discussing concerns, debating policy choices, advocating, etc.
  • To invest in relationships, by deepening our interconnections with our community, family, neighbors, etc..
  • To understand power, by learning about the fluidity of power and the various ways we the people can use it for our collective benefit.
  • To value the collective, by working towards outcomes that benefit the many, not just the few.

The four seasons of episodes (ranging from 11 to 16 episodes each season) consist of interviews with folks who are thinking about and demonstrating democracy-building activities. It’s a wonderful resource for ideas. They include international, national, statewide, and local leaders.