Progressive Values Stories: Joe Brewer on Empathy

The trick is to look into the other to see yourself in them and them in you.  So when I’m talking about empathy, I’m really talking about the connection with other people.

Edwin:  I’m also looking for actual stories, some memory or story …

 Yeah, there are other kinds of empathy besides empathy for other people.  I’m a strong environmentalist, and I know that the experience that I’ve had, like today picking up trash, is like the experience I’ve had living in squalor.  And one example of living in squalor that resonates in me – like a few years ago I visited India and visited old Delphi, a place which has concrete streets and mud-filled streets.  And as walked down those streets, I would smell the refuse and garbage.  People would use the streets as a bathroom – there were no public bathrooms and public trashcans.

So, as I would walk along the street, I would be surrounded by garbage and human refuse.  And so the experience I had was of people not caring for their surroundings.  And that was a place where I felt empathy for the broader world in two ways.  One, I felt the sickness we are putting on the world by having garbage lying all around.  Then I felt the sickness of our communities that depend on a healthy environment in order to survive and be healthy ourselves.  So I felt a deep sense of connection with the broader world when I was surrounded by that squalor.

Some Questions To Ponder:
How would you define the word "Values" and "Principles"?
How are "Values" and "Principles" different?
What is personally the most important progressive value to you?
Do you have a personal story or anecdote of how you learned some insight into this value?
How does this progressive value differ from conservative values?
How have conservative values failed?

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