What happens when a heated professional conflict comes back years later with unexpected consequences? In this episode, Bill Imada, Chairman and Chief Connectivity Officer at IW Group, shares a high-stakes agency clash that nearly burned a bridge only to reveal a deeper lesson about communication, trust, and second chances. Drawing on IW Group's research into national civility trends, he discusses a striking paradox: most people believe they’re civil, yet expect others not to be. This dynamic fuels silence, avoidance, and missed opportunities for connection. Together, we explore how incivility isn’t just loud and aggressive, but also quiet and withdrawn and why both are dangerous. The path forward? Curiosity, courage, and conversations that bring more voices to the table before it’s too late.

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In this episode of When We Disagree, host Michael Lee sits down with advocate Radia Baxter, a community advocate and political advisor in South Carolina, explores a powerful tension: our desire for economic growth without equal access to opportunity. Drawing from her experience as a teen mother who defied expectations, Baxter shares how personal adversity shaped her commitment to second chances and community empowerment. She argues that true “significant success” means helping others see their own value and bringing them along in the process. From leading programs inside detention centers to building trust across divides, Baxter reveals how vulnerability, access, and belief can transform lives. This conversation explores what it really takes to create opportunity and why trust is the foundation of it all.

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Wilk Wilkinson, host of the Derate the Hate podcast and a leader with Braver Angels, about what it really takes to bridge deep divides. During the pandemic, Wilk worked at a job where he was forced to enforce a mask mandate he disagreed with. The tension between his personal belief and professional responsibility was powerful, and that moment sparked a personal and professional transformation in his life. He dedicated himself to depolarization and constructive dialogue. This conversation explores why curiosity, humility, and a willingness to be wrong are essential for meaningful conversations, why “you can’t hate someone into changing their mind.” Wilk offers a hopeful vision: if more people embraced these habits of curiosity, we might move from zero-sum politics toward genuine understanding and shared solutions.

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School choice sparks some of the most heated arguments in education, and Shaka Mitchell, senior fellow at the American Federation for Children and the founder of the Come Together Music Project, lives them firsthand. From tense legislative showdowns to personal confrontations, he explains why the issue cuts so deeply and what’s really at stake for families. Drawing on his own upbringing, Mitchell makes the case for expanding educational options while engaging seriously with critics’ concerns about equity and community impact. But beyond policy, he reflects on what years of disagreement have taught him: most opponents share the same core values, even if they clash on solutions. The conversation ultimately asks how we can argue fiercely, listen generously, and build broader coalitions without losing conviction.

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John Inazu, the Sally D. Danforth Distinguished Professor of Law and Religion at Washington University in St. Louis, reflects on a painful argument with his father and what it taught him about humility, boundaries, and repairing relationships. Inazu, author of Liberty's Refuge, Confident Pluralism, and his newest book, Learning to Disagree, shares why our hardest conflicts often happen with the people we love most. The conversation explores why online arguments rarely lead to understanding, how shared humanity can rebuild common ground, and why institutions like universities still matter for healthy disagreement. It’s a candid conversation about family, politics, empathy and learning how to disagree without losing each other.

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Steve Cody, veteran public relations and strategic communications strategist and founder of Peppercomm, shares the story of a dramatic “business divorce” with his longtime partner that nearly destroyed the company they built together. Just as a major acquisition was about to close, a last-minute disagreement over the future of the firm blew everything apart. The fallout compelled Cody to rebuild the company from the ground up with a smaller team and a renewed sense of vulnerability. In the process, he learned the importance of inviting dissent and creating a culture where disagreement is safe and constructive. What began as a devastating split ultimately became the catalyst for success and a different model of business leadership.

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What happens when people with deeply opposing views actually listen to each other? Doug Sprei of the College Debates and Discourse Alliance shares stories from more than 300 campus debates designed to help students disagree without dehumanizing one another. In one unforgettable moment, two students with radically different perspectives speak back-to-back, and the entire room shifts from tension to genuine listening. The episode explores why students are hungry for spaces where they can speak openly, challenge ideas, and be heard with respect. It’s a conversation about how debate—done well—can restore curiosity, courage, and humanity to public disagreement.

Re-release from January 2025. When We Disagree is on spring break!

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Veteran lobbyist and community mediator Michael Covington shares lessons from a career spent navigating conflict in South Carolina politics and public life. From tense racial disputes over highway construction to behind-the-scenes statehouse negotiations, he explains why confronting problems directly, as well as listening carefully, can unlock progress. Covington argues that persuasion starts with understanding what people already believe and building from there. Along the way, he reflects on bias, the power of simple communication, and the surprising role of the scientific method in public reasoning. It’s a conversation about patience, persuasion, and why engaging the people you disagree with still matters.

Re-release from 2025. When We Disagree is on spring break!

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