Dear Clarissa,

Well, Sweetie, it’s almost here. Tomorrow is the day that you join young people all over the country and walk out of your classes for 17 minutes to protest the prevalence of gun violence in our society and to honor the 17 lives lost one month ago in Parkland, Florida. As someone who has done a fair bit of protesting in his life, I have a few pieces of advice that, like all of my advice, you are free to do with as you choose.

Collectively, there are thousands of organizations and funders already working to improve our country. So why does our country appear to be a mess?

The weakest part of our country is our willingness to live in a narrative/news stream that confirms our own bias and demonizes others. We could make our collective work exponentially more effective by fostering strong relationships among people of different viewpoints.

We are only three months into 2018, but already big things are happening within the independent movement -- especially in Colorado.

Unite America (formerly the Centrist Project) recently launched with an ambitious goal: to elect enough independents to shift the balance of power in several states and in DC away from the Republican and Democratic Parties, and give a voice back to the people.