Betsy DeVos Urges Americans To 'Listen' To Each Other And Not Be 'Nasty' On Social Media
- 6 years ago
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos urged Americans to listen more and engage with each other.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Monday advised students to "listen" to each other more and not be "nasty" on social media. "Starting with ourselves, with introspection, would help us approach each other with more respect and grace," she said during a town hall held at the National Constitution Center. "Then listen, really listen and then personally engage with those with whom we disagree." "It's easy to be nasty, hiding between behind screens and twitter handles. It's not so easy when we're face to face," DeVos further noted. "When we are, we more quickly recognize that behind each strongly held idea are heartbeats, emotions, experiences, in other words, a real person, and if we use our two ears proportionally to our one mouth, we can speak with conviction when we're certain and listen with intent when we're not, humbly leaving open the possibility that even when we feel quite certain, we might be quite wrong." Her comments about social media come as President Trump continues to use the platform to insult his rivals and challenge reports. In addition to deriding staff members and appointed officials, Trump asserted via Twitter on Thursday that the recently reported 3,000-person Hurricane Maria death toll in Puerto Rico was an effort by Democrats to make him look bad.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Monday advised students to "listen" to each other more and not be "nasty" on social media. "Starting with ourselves, with introspection, would help us approach each other with more respect and grace," she said during a town hall held at the National Constitution Center. "Then listen, really listen and then personally engage with those with whom we disagree." "It's easy to be nasty, hiding between behind screens and twitter handles. It's not so easy when we're face to face," DeVos further noted. "When we are, we more quickly recognize that behind each strongly held idea are heartbeats, emotions, experiences, in other words, a real person, and if we use our two ears proportionally to our one mouth, we can speak with conviction when we're certain and listen with intent when we're not, humbly leaving open the possibility that even when we feel quite certain, we might be quite wrong." Her comments about social media come as President Trump continues to use the platform to insult his rivals and challenge reports. In addition to deriding staff members and appointed officials, Trump asserted via Twitter on Thursday that the recently reported 3,000-person Hurricane Maria death toll in Puerto Rico was an effort by Democrats to make him look bad.