“Who here is against clean water? Who is against good jobs?” asks Mariah Levison, CEO of the nonprofit Convergence, at events before suggesting, “Very few wake up in the morning wanting to make the world a worse place.”
That’s far from the perception many Americans hold today. A record-high 80% of U.S. adults in a September 2024 Gallup poll believe Americans are “greatly divided on the most important values” (10 percentage points higher than a decade go). That kind of perceived division has been shown to exacerbate hostilities and “fuel distrust where common ground might otherwise be found among citizens,” summarizes Lawrence Torcello, professor at Rochester Institute of Technology.
The recent U.S. election might be the high-water mark for division in America this century, with 64% of Americans saying in a post-election survey that stress about recent results is impacting their holiday plans, with close to a quarter (23%) considering skipping gathering for Thanksgiving altogether.
“These times are feeling so divided, and it’s easy to forget how as Americans we share so many values,” says Beth Miller, Convergence executive vice president. It was this election hostility that prompted this organization to publish this week a new list of “10 Important Beliefs Most Americans Share.” She tells Deseret News, “We may have different ideas of how to get there, but there’s so much we agree on and want to see happen.”
Instead of showcasing agreements that are more obvious (“inflation is bad” ... “crime is bad” ... “war is very bad”), they curated a list of agreements that may surprise us. We’ve added some context to their top 10:
1. Connecting with others matters
Spending time with loved ones, whether biological or chosen, is a top priority for most Americans, according to Pew. And little wonder: people with warm, supportive relationships live longer, healthier and more fulfilling lives compared to those who are more isolated, according to research compiled by Harvard.
2. Reducing division is crucial
Most of the country believes the country has grown more partisan and see division as a major concern. According to Public Agenda, 93% of Americans feel reducing divisiveness is important, with two-thirds believing it’s very important.
3. Common ground is still there
Despite enduring concern about being deeply divided, it turns out most Americans have a sneaking suspicion there’s a deeper foundation we can stand on. Seventy-one percent of Americans believe we have more in common than what divides us, according to the nonprofit More in Common.
4. Holding government accountable
Ninety percent of Democrats and 89% of Republicans believe all levels of government must be accountable to the people, according to the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago. Nine in 10 Democrats and Republicans also agree on six key values, including fairness and accountability.
5. Helping families flourish
Voices from across the political spectrum agree about the importance of helping families flourish, according to Convergence data. That depends on essential needs being met, such as family and community connectedness; being equipped to overcome obstacles and setbacks; and having autonomy to make childrearing decisions that align with their values.
6. Participating as citizens
60% of Americans believe citizen involvement is crucial for solving our community and national issues, according to NORC at the University of Chicago.
7. Preventing gun violence
Nearly 70% of Americans support funding community-based gun violence prevention programs. This highlights a motivation among American communities to work out solutions together. (It’s also worth pointing out that many Americans advocate for both the right to bear arms and further common-sense restrictions on firearms.)
8. Showing respect and compassion
Nine in 10 Americans — regardless of political affiliation — hold respect and compassion as core values, according to NORC at the University of Chicago. Despite this shared reality, Democrats and Republicans each believe that only a third of the opposing side values “respect and compassion across differences.”
9. Appreciating benefits of immigration
Despite concerns, two-thirds of Americans see immigration generally as a positive for the country, according to Gallup. (Other surveys show 61% believing that illegal immigration is a problem in the United States.)
10. Trusting the American Dream
Seven in 10 Americans say they’ve achieved or are on their way to achieving the American Dream, according to Archbridge Institute.
The work of mapping out common ground
Sometimes discovering common ground is as simple as new awareness. Other times, it takes some work going deep with people who don’t see the world the same way. For 15 years, Convergence has been bringing together people across deep division (not just centrists) to map out real-life common ground.
So, for example, the organization brought together people concerned about guns and suicide, asking them: “Share an experience you’ve had that has really shaped your involvement with this issue.” One participant had lost their daughter to gun violence. Another grew up hunting with his father and was afraid of his children losing that chance.
At a forum on supporting families with young children struggling with the high cost of living, Convergence brought together a wide range of collaborators, including a senior director at Walmart, the President of the National Black Child Development Institute, and representatives from The Heritage Foundation, Brookings and the Urban Institute.
“These people said they had never interacted together previously, except to testify against each other,” Miller said — yet they come out of forums like this with a “significant increase in willingness to work across the divide” as they see other participants as humans who are “operating in good faith.” The collaborating group also leaves with a concrete list of shared action proposals that could be implemented policy-wise.
Many more hidden agreements
These are just a subset of many other agreements tracked in recent years, however. CBS News shared an impressive list of “50 surprising things Americans actually agree on” in 2022. Included are the following:
- Some of the most common agreements reflect enduring economic concerns (“Inflation is serious” ... ”Spending on public housing should increase” … “Limits should be set on rent increases” ... “Teachers should get more pay” … “The government should offer medical-debt forgiveness” … “Social welfare programs are fine”)
- Most Americans (90%) say the president should never lie and should unite the country. They also say U.S. representatives should compromise and be bipartisan.
- Most hold favorable views of the military and law enforcement, while also believing it should be legal to record police.
- Most Americans say our country is on the wrong track, and most say drug abuse and violent crime are serious issues.
- To reassure all the patriots, most Americans believe independence was the right call, think monarchy would be bad for us, see the flag as a positive symbol and see themselves as patriotic. Most also believe the Founding Fathers would be disappointed and definitely don’t want another civil war.
- There is also a strong commitment among most Americans to individual rights and fundamental democratic principles, including equal protection under the law, voting rights, religious freedoms, freedom of assembly and speech, and a free press.
- Majorities of Americans express concerns over China and Russia, while saying the U.K. is our friend and that we should defend Canada in case of war.
- Most see white-supremacist extremism as a concern and believe racism is real and a problem.
- More than 80% of Americans believe in a “soul” a “spirit” or “something beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it.”
- Oh, and by the way, most Americans say Texas has the best BBQ (although even non-experts hold their suspicions at how many people who responded to that survey live in the second most populous state in the nation).
Just because 3 out of 4 Americans agree on something, of course, doesn’t mean the others should be steamrolled. Holding meaningful space for minority views is at the heart of the American experiment.
Opens in new window“Our differences are important too,” the Convergence team emphasizes. “And we believe navigating them becomes easier when we are grounded in what unites us.”
Most Americans “are pretty moderate” says Lilliana Mason, a political scientist at Johns Hopkins University, “but they’ve been riled up to hate people of the other party for being different from them culturally, racially and religiously.”