In the face of a global pandemic and racial injustice, Virginians are working to rebuild the Commonwealth as well as the country. "This tsunami, it's not going to be survivable if we don't start talking with each other and seeing each other as human beings," said Brenda Brown-Grooms.
Over the past year, VPM brought together Virginians like Brown-Grooms to participate in StoryCorps’ One Small Step. Participants reached across the political aisle for a conversation and discovered they have more in common with each other than they thought.
VPM is one of six stations in the United States that partnered with StoryCorps for the initiative that aims to bring together people with different beliefs and experiences for a chance to better understand each other. One Small Step hopes to break down political barriers so participants see each other as human beings rather than political rivals.
“It's okay to be at opposite ends but the most important thing is how we understand, respect, and appreciate where that other individual is coming from, more importantly, the experiences that they've had,” said Dontrese Brown, a VPM One Small Step participant.
Explore this initiative deeper with the StoryCorps Listening Session, hosted by VPM News Director Craig Carper. He’ll talk with StoryCorps founder, Dave Isay, about the importance of the project, and One Small Step producer, Diana Williams, will talk with participants about their experiences.
This program will stream on VPM’s Facebook page Tuesday, December 15 at 7:00 p.m.