The Art of Progressive Persuasion (with Maurice Mitchell)

How to Save a Country

Whether you’re a canvasser knocking on doors or a member of Congress building coalitions on the House floor, persuasion is a fundamental part of politics. In recent years, deepening polarization has led to a renewed focus on voter turnout, but Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, argues that persuasion needs to be a bigger part of progressive strategy. Fresh off a tour on this topic with Anand Giridharadas, author of The Persuaders, Maurice stopped by How to Save a Country to talk to Felicia and Michael about how progressives can better engage with those outside their politics—or outside politics altogether.

Maurice has been organizing for racial, social, and economic justice for decades, and played a pivotal role in organizing the first Movement for Black Lives conference in 2015. Now, he’s helping to make the Working Families Party a political home for a progressive and multiracial working-class movement.

“We’re trying to organize people to counterbalance the influence of organized capital,” he tells Felicia and Michael.

Maurice offers insights on how to engage with someone who fundamentally disagrees with you, and compares persuasion strategies between the right and the left. He discusses how progressive organizations can focus on the most important battles, by expanding on his essay that shook the progressive movement last fall: “Building Resilient Organizations.”

Finally, he argues that progressives need to adopt a more active role: “It’s helpful that we have ideas that work, but we need to persuade others that our ideas are their ideas.”

Presented by the Roosevelt Institute, The New Republic, and PRX. Generous funding for this podcast was provided by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Omidyar Network. Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of its funders.

You can find transcripts and related resources for every episode at howtosaveacountry.org.