How Do We Get Through This?

Author: Tim Phillips, Beyond Conflict

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The United States is facing the most consequential election in its history. Fewer than 100,000 Americans will decide the outcome. And whether Kamala Harris or Donald Trump win, half the population will view the results in existential terms. Anger, fear and division run deep.

Democracy and rule of law are under threat in a way we haven’t seen in decades or perhaps centuries. But if we look around the world, we 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, we speak with leaders who were key to shaping their countries’ futures at times when everything was at stake. In our first episode, we speak to two leaders who helped bring an end to Apartheid and establish a multiracial democracy in South Africa. In episode 2, we go to Northern Ireland, and speak to a Protestant and a Catholic who negotiated an end to decades of war. In our third episode, to be released after the election, we invite a global panel of guests to help us figure out where we go from here.

We hope the lessons they learned when all hope seemed lost, when continued violence seemed inevitable, will help Americans navigate this moment and apply these lessons as we work to keep our country whole and build a more inclusive democracy and nation.

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How South Africa Avoided Civil War and Built a Democracy

2024-10-2156:34

“Everybody in the world, including ourselves, thought it was insurmountable.” - Roelf MeyerJust over 30 years ago, South Africa was at a tipping point. Nelson Mandela and his party, the 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. But that transformation was not easy. South Africa came close to civil war multiple times during those negotiations. Extremists on both sides carried out bombings, assassinations, and large scale attacks. In the four years between Mandela’s release from prison and the first democratic elections, more than 20,000 people – men, women, and children – died in the violence. Our guests this episode sat across that negotiating table from one another. Mohammed Bhabha was a leading activist in the ANC freedom struggle. During Apartheid, he was a lawyer who defended ANC members, 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. While South Africa isn’t perfect, Roelf and Mohammed bring powerful lessons that Americans can apply to find common ground, re-humanize the “other” and safeguard democracy. Music by Blue Dot Sessions, Erik Lindgren, Gavin Luke, Martin Landh, Hampus Naeselius How Do We Get Through This? is hosted by Tim Phillips, Founder and CEO of Beyond Conflict. It's produced and edited by Andrea Muraskin, with additional editing by Ashley-Milne Tyte. We have marketing support from Summer Heidish. Connect with us at Beyond ConflictOur website LinkedIn X/TwitterInstagramOur book

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How Do We Get Through This?