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Imagine a world where kindness dictates political discourse - sounds unimaginable, right? Join me, Mike Rathbun, as we traverse the tumultuous terrain of politics interlaced with kindness in this episode of Kindness Matters. We embark on a captivating exploration of the transformative tactics of Republican Newt Gingrich, and how his strategic use of language left an indelible mark on political communication. However, language can be a double-edged sword, and our journey veers towards the perilous path of dehumanization in politics, with chilling examples from Nazi Germany and the Rwandan genocide.

But it's not just about the past, it's about the present too. It's about how two-thirds of Americans perceive members of the opposing political party as less human, and the threat this poses to our democracy. We'll peel back the layers of this unsettling reality, discussing measures to combat it. Moreover, this episode is a call to arms for kindness in our daily lives as a remedy for political partisanship. After all, change begins at home - with you and me. So, tune in, be inspired, and take a stand for kindness in politics.

Links to sources. 
https://scholars.org/brief/what-history-teaches-about-partisanship-and-polarization 
https://www.npr.org/2020/10/18/925069809/the-consequences-of-politics-dehumanizing-language 
https://theconversation.com/the-slippery-slope-of-dehumanizing-language-97512 
https://spsp.org/news-center/character-context-blog/dehumanization-threatening-democracy?fbclid=IwAR1Y7TDYnkkF--JoG-On4QZTrtfbjvmvP9uBQOjs-8A0tCUrFfcwVJJzVzs
 

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It's one thing to highlight the kindness that we see in the world, but it's another to, as I put in many of my social media posts, #bethechange. I am donating all of my royalties from the sale of my book, Change A World; In Order to Change The World to local and national non-profits. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!