RICHMOND, Va. β Richmond-native and New York Times bestselling novelist David Baldacci and his wife, along with VCU and the Library of Virginia, hope a $13 million donation to create the "Civil Discourse and Collaboration Initiative," will encouraging nonpartisan, civil dialogue across the political spectrum.
Baldacci says the complete polarization of the country over recent years prompted the donation, comparing current politics to "a years-long tailgate without the fun."
"Each side is hurling vitriol at the other side and saying that the other side wins it's going to be apocalypse," Baldacci said. "It's just sort of human nature to divide into different camps. But that doesn't mean that situation has to be permanent."
The novelist believes most people want an alternative.
"In my heart, I don't believe that people want to mad all the time, you know. I believe that people actually want to discuss things peacefully and civilly and rationally," Baldacci said.
Baldacci has been discussing this initiative for over a year, wanting to get people more civically engaged and treating citizenship more seriously.
"It's not a free ride, it's not a free lunch, it's a job. If you approach it as a job, I think people will work harder at it," he said.
His ideal involves people getting off social media and having respectful conversations with others who may have different viewpoints.
"We may change their minds, they may change our minds, but have a conversation that's civil and peaceful, which is what we used to do, and politicians used to work together, and we can do it again," Baldacci said.
Library of Virginia Librarian Dennis Clark emphasized libraries as nonpartisan spaces where difficult conversations have always occurred.
The initiative will develop curriculum for VCU students, host public forums and events, and use the library as a connection point for community members.
"To have honest dialog about what the issues really are and how we move forward together, versus, you know, find our talking points and trying to beat each other up with this idea or that idea," Clark said.
Baldacci warns that without change, the future remains uncertain.
"Because the rest of the world is not waiting for us to, you know, get our house in order. They are moving on," Baldacci said.
While specific details haven't been revealed, the Library of Virginia plans to launch their first speaker series this winter.
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