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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Comment
Anne McElvoy

I can’t solve Brexit or the culture wars – but I’ve learned to see the other side of even the most polarised debates

The anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray argues with a Brexit supporter in 2021.
‘I hear more of the areas now in debates where there could be commonality or understanding.’ The anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray argues with a Brexit supporter in 2021. Photograph: Avpics/Alamy

Vehemently disagreeing comes naturally to many of us, and the fraught times we live in often make it seem easier to find divisions than bridging points. But as noble as it is to stand up for our beliefs, there’s also a wearing quality in being defined by our disagreements. From Brexit to the endless culture wars, these spats and blame games are easier to start than to end.

Like a lot of columnists, I have been booked for many pro-and-con debates on the “classic” dividing lines over the past decade. So since 2018, I have taken a break from the weekly wrangles over rights and wrongs to do something a bit different on the summer airwaves.

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