One Small Step Montage

A Republican “Kingmaker” And a Civil Rights Leader Take One Small Step to Heal Toxic Polarization In Columbus, GA

“I’ll tell you what, I’ve got a whole different view of you.”

Wane Hailes and Alton Russell

For the past 20 years, StoryCorps has been traveling the country gathering the stories and wisdom of ordinary Americans and archiving them at the Library of Congress. Those stories are usually between two people who know and love each other. 

This is not one of those stories. 

Alton Russell was the long-time Chair of the Republican party in Columbus, Georgia. Wane Hailes was the head of the local NAACP. Although they knew of each other, they had never actually spoken — until they sat down for a One Small Step conversation.  

One Small Step pairs strangers with opposing political beliefs to have one-on-one conversations, not to debate politics, but to find out who each other are as people. The goal is to help reduce toxic polarization in the US — one conversation at a time. StoryCorps began piloting One Small Step in 2017 and since then, more than 5,400 people in over 40 states have participated.

One Small Step conversation partners, Wane and Alton, in Columbus, GA.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired July 5th, 2024, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Cassandra and Dave’s One Small Step Conversation

Cassandra and Dave’s Conversation

Participants Cassandra and Dave recorded a One Small Step conversation in Birmingham, Alabama.

Strangers Talk in Hopes of Bridging Their Political Divides

Here at StoryCorps, we’re used to hearing conversations between two people who know and love one another.

In this story, we eavesdrop on a conversation that’s a little bit different. It takes place between two strangers, and was recorded as part of One Small Step, our new initiative that brings people together from opposite sides of the political divide.

In summer of 2018, Tiffany Briseño and Israel Baryeshua met for the first time in Denver to have this discussion.

Photo: Tiffany Briseño and Israel Baryeshua pose at their One Small Step interview in Denver, Colorado on July 18, 2018. By Camila Kerwin for StoryCorps.

Originally aired November 9, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.