benefits of friction

People often think the work of strengthening democracy means thrusting people in a room together to have meaty, critical conversations. But according to Bridget Marquis, director of the nonprofit Reimagining the Civic Commons, this is a misunderstanding.

“Civic infrastructure — parks, trails, libraries, community centers, neighborhood main streets

Physically bringing people together, however, is not enough. The places where socioeconomic classes mix the most, according to new research, are casual restaurant chains like Olive Garden. But inside these establishments*,* diners generally interact almost only with those at their own table. What Marquis has found is that within community spaces,

Crossroads was what is known as a “hug space.” Community spaces tend to form around three H’s, Marquis says: havens, hangouts and hugs. Havens are protected spaces of belonging, where identity matters and the exclusivity of that protection is what creates safety for those in the in-group. Hangouts are neutral spaces where people can simply be but

Third spaces — the hug spaces — need to be physically designed for conversational distance (a literal rubbing of elbows) and they need to incorporate intentional programming that creates opportunities for spontaneous, unpredictable communication and connection. The necessary work of bridging societal divides to strengthen democracy, then, may be

Tech boasts a frictionless existence, but friction is part of what makes life worth living. Every time we exchange our fallible, friction-filled world for a smoother, more convenient, more predictable experience, we are chipping away at what makes us human: our souls.

I stopped attending church long ago. While I haven’t missed the church itself, I have missed the feeling of church. What I am really desiring is the feeling of an embodied experience of communion. Being in physical space with other humans. I don’t have to know all these humans, identify with them or even agree with them, but I do have to feel