The Other Side
Advance Praise:
“John Corvino is a nationally known proponent of gay marriage. I used to be an opponent. We had many debates, some of them intense, and I can tell you this: No one in the country is better at knowing how to disagree with someone while winning their respect and friendship. The strategies he offers in this book certainly worked with me. I highly recommend that you read it. Not just in order to be a better advocate, but also to be a better person.”
— David Blankenhorn
Braver Angels co-founder and author of In Search of Braver Angels
“What makes The Other Side such a timely and valuable must-read resource for activists today? John Corvino’s skill at illustrating and explaining how to effectively engage those who are not yet or fully with you. The freedom to marry campaign is lifted up today as a model of persuasion and organizing for other causes and needed advocacy here in the US and worldwide, but that campaign’s transformation of hearts and minds as well as the law didn’t come out of nowhere. It was the product of strategy, inclusiveness, and a disciplined commitment to moving “the reachable, but not yet reached” and deploying the chief engine of change, conversation. These are the keys to the urgent work still upon us now as we are called to defend and reinvigorate liberal democracy in politics and daily life. The Other Side reminds us how to do it…and how to win.”
— Evan Wolfson
Freedom to Marry Founder
“It’s not cliché to say we live in a divisive time, a moment of extreme ideological and affective polarization. There’s no doubt there are massive disagreements on both sides. But could there be an ethics or an art to doing it right? Corvino says yes.
By taking us on a journey through the nature of polarization, the promise and problems of civility, and the structures that get in the way of productive dialogue, Corvino helps us battle the temptations of tribalism, signaling, likes, and arrogance to become people who disagree better. While it is easy to disagree, it’s harder to do it right. In accessible and insightful ways, Corvino helps us to change course as he challenges us to stop being the problem, guard what we say and how we say it, practice charity and humility, and become radical moderates.
The Other Side is a must-read for those who are serious about doing things differently.”
— Myisha Cherry
Author of The Case for Rage: Why Anger is Essential to the Anti-Racist Struggle and Failures of Forgiveness: What We Get Wrong and How To Do Better
“A wise ethical philosopher, winning LGBT activist, and charismatic public communicator, John Corvino is a unique figure in American cultural life. As only he can—with examples ranging from Aristotle to a pie in the face—he shows how civility wins arguments and opens hearts, and why our country urgently needs more of it. Reading The Other Side has made me a better persuader and a better person, and it will do the same for you.”
— Jonathan Rauch
Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution and author of The Constitution of Knowledge