More than Manners: Counties Advancing Civility at the Local Level

Even though national politics. are increasingly dividing the country, local governments have the opportunity to encourage respect within their communities by bringing people together to discuss shared concerns.

“I want you to save democracy, and I’m not even kidding,” Liz Joyner, executive director of Village Square told county commissioners on Monday morning. “There's this national dysfunction where we no longer hang with people we disagree with. But the way American democracy has always worked is through communities. But now it's top down. And these national parties are divisive on issues that don’t have much to do with local issues.”

Village Square is a nonprofit dedicated to reviving civil connections across communities to help reduce partisan divides.

Howard County, Md. has worked with Village Square to increase respect in their community by establishing their “choose civility campaign”-- a county-wide initiative that aims to increase inclusion, opportunity, and understanding among constituents.

“There was no impetus for us to adopt civility measures, but we can always do better in our daily lives. We appreciated the reminder to be civil,” Christie Lassan, director of public relations for the Howard County Library System, told NACo members.

Among other initiatives, the county established an app to connect neighbors in need with neighbors who might help. Most recently, they kicked off a “Human Library” event series, where people of different backgrounds and faiths speak to the community about their backgrounds.

This “choose civility” program became so popular in Howard County that other counties across the nation have adopted the same initiative.

In addition to promoting civility among constituents, it is also important to encourage dialogue among county officials.

“You could never say sorry we’re not going to pick up your garbage on Monday because we can’t figure out our budget,” NACo President Bryan Desloge said. “On the local level, you have to work together.”