We are honored to share that we were mentioned by President Obama during his “Challenges to Democracy in the Digital Information Realm” keynote when he talked about “a new generation of activists” who are leading the way in addressing the problem of disinformation and polarization in the U.S.:

“And the good news is we’ve got a new generation of activists that seem to be ready to keep moving… I’ve had the privilege of meeting young leaders in our Obama Foundation network, like… Juliana Tafur, who’s using documentary film and curated workshops to reduce polarization and help Americans connect across differences. Young people everywhere are recognizing that this is a problem. They’re not just griping about it, they’re doing their part to fix it. And the rest of us need to follow their lead.” – Former President Barack Obama, April 21, 2022

Our Listen Courageously journey has taken us to many different communities, groups and organizations across the world. Most recently, we had the honor of screening “List(e)n” and hosting the Listen Courageously workshop for the University of Miami’s Human Rights Clinic. It was a compelling experience to be able to engage the students in our work of courageous listening. Max Zoberman was tasked with writing a response paper on his takeaways after watching “List(e)n”. Below is a compilation of his best quotes, from his thought-provoking piece “Documentary Filmmaking and Human Rights”.

Max’s General Overview:

Max’s main takeaways about the interactions between the film participants:

Aalayah & Todd

Tony & Kelsey

Linda & Tewannah

Max’s incisive analysis of each pair brought together in “List(e)n” illuminates the true nature of what it takes to listen courageously. Thank you Max for the depth of thought in your analysis!

My name is Juliana Tafur. I’m the producer and director of the award-winning documentary “List(e)n” as well as the founder of Listen Courageously, a movement and workshop with a mission to show people how to navigate our differences, through listening. 

As a Colombian-American who came to the United States as a political asylee at age 15, my identity has always been defined by ‘a mix of things’. While in college at Northwestern, I spent a considerable amount of time in Egypt as an exchange student, and produced a student film about the Sudanese refugees in Cairo. On any given day you can find me speaking English, Spanish and Portuguese, and being equally comfortable in the U.S., Latin America and Brazil – where I lived and worked for six years. I also married a Norwegian, to add one more variant to the mix.

The friendships, lived experiences and family ties around different corners of the world have made me strive for a world where we see others in their full capacity, regardless of ideology, gender or sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, ethnic or cultural background, and race. This is also why I’m passionate about creating genuine human connection, amidst the extremely polarizing times we’re living in. My workshops are breaking down these silos, by guiding people on how to have heart-centered conversations that lead to understanding. 

My journey with “List(e)n” began four years ago, in January of 2017. I was sitting at my desk at a Discovery Networks, intending to work, but videos circulating the web of people at odds with each other — yelling, cursing, labeling, finger-pointing and “othering” — were too daunting. Feeling saddened and questioning my own place in our American society, I took action, in an attempt to heal the divide I was seeing and feeling. 

I was in for a wild ride. Transitioning from a network executive to a social impact entrepreneur was the first step. Without any time to spare, I held talks with cable networks about my idea, and realized quickly that their attempts to “spice up” my vision to make it more “appealing” and “ratings-driven” wasn’t going to work for me. I was determined to produce a film that wouldn’t exacerbate our divisions, but invite us to see our shared humanity, instead. After a few months, I was able to secure funding from an angel investor and get to work.

List(e)n features participants on opposite sides of hot-button political issues – gun policy, abortion and immigration – with the intent to have them connect at a human level and transcend their differences. You can watch “List(e)n’s” trailer here: http://listencourageously.com/thefilm/

The film toured the country at respected film festivals – including the 37th edition of the Miami Film Festival – and has been a recipient of multiple industry accolades, including a humanitarian award. Described by festival programmers as “a knockout” and by viewers as “riveting, moving and timely”, the 80-minute documentary is wise to the ways we sometimes hate that which we don’t understand. It is also brave enough to ask: Can we at least try to listen those with whom we most disagree?

Listen Courageously was born after I identified the need for a workshop to complement my film, which could show participants what happens when we stop, to listen – and how when we learn about others who might look or think differently from us, and understand their lived experiences – the fear and/or hatred we might feel for them dissolves. 

I am proud of how far I’ve come with Listen Courageously. Our program has already positively impacted hundreds of participants in more than 15 leading corporations, organizations and academic institutions in the U.S., Canada and beyond – such as Salesforce, the United Nations Foundation, Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, Ohio State, Michigan State and Northwestern University, among others. 

We keep going, inspired by reviews from our clients, who are saying things like: “This should be a “must view and participate” for everyone. If you have the chance, do it!  You will learn a lot about yourself and will likely be moved by the experience.  We might make even the world a little better, too…. one conversation at a time.”

Since I am working to eradicate the labels that we so often place on people, today I will tell you ‘I’m a citizen of the world’ with a message: “our perceptions don’t identify us and as humans we can strive for meaningful connections, regardless of what we think separates us.” Like our mission? Join our movement at www.listencourageously.com 

As seen on The Miami Herald:

January 2017. I was sitting at my desk at a TV network, intending to work, but distracted by all the noise on social media. Videos circulating the web of people at odds with each other — yelling, cursing, labeling, fingerpointing and “othering” — were daunting. I think we all remember them. It was as if the United States’ mantle of “perfect” had been lifted; it was as if people’s dormant rage was let loose. It was ugly and scary. I felt impotent, disheartened and disconnected from humanity. Deep down I knew we could do better, or rather — that we were better. I decided to do a film, but the question remained: How could I showcase the best of the human spirit in such divisive times? The answer was clear: I had no idea.

Still, I ventured to find participants whose stories deeply intertwined with the issues across the topics of abortion, immigration and guns. My goal was for these people — activists for their causes — to listen to each other. I knew it wasn’t an easy ask. I was struggling with it myself. Was I ready to listen? Shielding myself in my belief bubble would have been easier, but I was also seeking answers, or comfort — I wasn’t sure. Guided purely by intuition, I suspected that our lack of communication was at the root of our divides, and I decided to open the door for dialogue to ensue, for discomfort to surface and for hatred to burst.

Was I in for a journey! Here’s what I learned:

 Lesson 1: Understanding and connection lie at the end of our discomforts.

Here’s what I had been hoping for all along. Had I not sat my participants down for three separate encounters, had I not believed that connection between them was possible after they got to hear each other out, I would have never witnessed this. I’m grateful I did. It was beautiful, it was transformative. It led me to title the film “LIST(e)N” and sent me on a journey to learn more about the power of listening.

Lesson 2: Deep listening is hard to come by.

As a society, we’re not taught how to listen. Instead, what’s celebrated is our ability to speak up. This is curious, since listening may be the single most important trait for personal and professional relationships. Listening entails being fully present when speaking with someone, giving them your undivided attention and not judging or overanalyzing what’s being said. It’s almost as if you put your egoic self to rest and you allow yourself to just listen.

Lesson 3: Listening is an act of courage.

We have been programmed to avoid ‘talking politics’, so naturally, we wonder whether the risks of listening to people with opposing viewpoints outweigh the benefits. After all, it’s easier to shut off all the yelling, let someone else deal with it and have someone else fight off the hatred. Listening to someone with whom we disagree can be uncomfortable, but it’s a necessity in order to transcend our differences. No dialogue yields no resolution.

Lesson 4: To understand is to heal.

Hatred automatically dissolves when we understand. And when we understand, we’re able to heal our divides, and our hearts. In making of the film, I saw how our joint human experience is greater than the rifts politicians emphasize. And better yet, the film’s participants realized that they could connect with each other when they — understood the life experiences of the other and delved into the why people believe what they believe. Their encounters gave them perspective.

Lesson 5: It is possible to change a heart without changing a viewpoint. 

It was powerful to realize that it’s possible to change people’s perceptions about each other without changing their perspectives on the issues. People can and will believe what they want to — and I wasn’t out to change this. I was out to open their hearts — have them learn something about “the other,” have them see something in ‘the other’ they never saw before and get them to connect in a way they never thought possible. And it worked. 

So, here’s my humble challenge: It’s human nature to dislike or hate that which we don’t understand. Let’s muster the courage to listen and listen to understand, with all that listening entails. And, may we all navigate the divisions in our country — and the world — with this refrain in mind, by the wise Elise M. Boulding: “Listening is the beginning of peace.” 

 Juliana Tafur is List(e)n’s producer/director and Listen Courageously’s creator. She was invited to write the article when the award-winning documentary was going to be shown at the 37th edition of the Miami Film Festival.

As seen on: https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article240967951.html#storylink=cpy