Next Door Strangers

Picture this: People are gathered around in the living room talking about politics. Or religion. You know, the big stuff that it seems like nobody agrees on. The people in the room don’t agree either, but they aren’t fighting. Believe it or not, this scene is taking place in living rooms across the country.

Common beliefs are what hold many groups together. So it’s no surprise that differing viewpoints within a group often cause fear or threaten the status quo. Episode 4 focuses on Maxine Hanks, a Mormon feminist who was excommunicated from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1993. Years later, she returned to the church that rejected her. Andrea talks with Maxine about what she’s learned about facing our differences, correcting injustices and healing wounds.

We’ve covered how tribalism is wreaking havoc in our lives, but tribes are also a source of strength. They’re how humans have organized themselves to survive for thousands of years. We explore the idea that maybe better, stronger tribes are what we really need to repair the social fabric.

Maybe you’ve heard that we are a divided country. Maybe you experience it in your life. Over the course of six episodes, Next Door Strangers is going to peer into people’s lives, getting to the bottom of what divides us and more important, finding ways to connect. We don’t know what we’ll find, but we hope you will join us. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.