It’s easy to drum up outrage these days. Pick a topic. Pick a party. Pick an “other.”
What’s not as easy to do? Choosing empathy. Taking a beat and thinking about what drives our anger and fuels our divides.
Thankfully, author and social psychologist Kurt Gray has — and he’ll share his insights during an evening of dialogue and reflection on Monday, August 25, at Birmingham’s Red Mountain Theatre.
Gray will unpack the science behind our outrage and reveal how empathy, not division, can drive real dialogue. You’ll discover why we’re more alike than we think, and how understanding our emotions can bridge even the deepest divides — no matter where we reside on the political, religious, or geographical spectrums.
The Alabama Humanities Alliance is grateful to present this event, part of its ongoing Woven Together series presented in partnership with the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham and Leadership Birmingham.
Our friends from Thank You Books will also be on hand with copies of Gray’s book, Outraged: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics and How to Find Common Ground, available for purchase and signing. Our thanks to Alabama Power for their sponsorship.
Outraged: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics — and How to Find Common Ground
August 25, 2025 | 6 p.m.
Red Mountain Theatre | Birmingham
Tickets: $10 | woventogether.swell.gives
About the speaker: Kurt Gray
Kurt Gray is an award-winning researcher and expert in how to study people’s deepest beliefs and why they matter. He’s the Weary Foundation Endowed Chair in the Social Psychology of Polarization and Misinformation, at Ohio State University. Gray also directs the Deepest Beliefs Lab and the Center for the Science of Moral Understanding at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
The key discovery from Gray’s research? He contends that beneath every heated argument lies a fundamental and shared concern about protecting someone or something from harm. The divide comes, he says, because we have different perceptions of what can be harmful and who might be harmed.
“A lot of past work argues that the morals of liberals and conservatives are so different. They have different minds and will never agree. That’s a really terrible place to be: ‘You’re from Mars and I’m from Venus – I guess we’ll always be aliens to each other,’ ” Gray says.
As a recent press release from Ohio State University shares: “Gray’s work challenges this idea and demonstrates that polarization is not rooted in fundamental difference; instead, it stems from moral disagreement and safety concerns common among all humans. People’s desire to protect themselves and their families drives political and other divisions, Gray explained.
“For example, on either side of the thorny national debate about gun control are people who feel threatened: some by the inability to defend themselves against violence without a gun, and some by gun violence itself. Recognizing this thread, he said, offers new possibilities for healing social rifts, as well as a hopeful perspective that is sorely needed.”
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About the Woven Together series
Woven Together features national and local experts who explore longstanding, systemic issues in our community and identify solutions to address these challenges. The goal of the learning series is to elevate big ideas, spark inspiring conversations, and drive transformational change in our region. Explore past Woven Together events at cfbham.org/events.
About the Alabama Humanities Alliance
Founded in 1974, the nonprofit and nonpartisan Alabama Humanities Alliance serves as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Through our grantmaking and public programming, we promote lifelong learning, impactful storytelling, and civic engagement. We believe the humanities can bring Alabamians together and help us better understand the communities we call home. Learn more at alabamahumanities.org.
About the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham
The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham is committed to improving quality of life in the Birmingham region by addressing community needs and supporting charitable organizations. We work every day to take on the fundamental issues that challenge the growth and success of the people in our communities, supporting those in need in our five-county region and supporting those who support others. Learn more at cfbham.org.
About Leadership Birmingham
Since 1982, Leadership Birmingham has united diverse cohorts of the region’s most engaged leaders to explore critical community issues and forge lasting relationships that shape Birmingham’s future. And we’re proud to continue our mission, educating and empowering community leaders to shape our city’s future for the better. Learn more at leadershipbirmingham.org.
Matt Spivey is the academic supervisor for social studies at Mobile County Public Schools, and a partner in organizing the South Alabama regional. He noted that the History Day program has obvious immediate impacts in terms of helping students build critical thinking skills, and in vetting and analyzing sources — “and in all those elements that will benefit our students in their classes, in those high-stakes tests that we use to measure their progress.”
But the highlight of the evening was the 
The 10-week Writing Our Histories pilot program culminated in an Alabama History Day contest on October 4, on the Mt. Meigs campus. Students presented their research as exhibits that colorfully highlighted what they’d learned on topics ranging from World War II and the Civil War to Alabama athletes and the civil rights movement. Students confidently and enthusiastically talked about what they’d learned, answering questions from Alabama History Day judges who work professionally as educators, historians, and authors. Teachers from other DYS campuses also attended to observe and bring the experience back to their own classrooms.