In two of the most politically opposite cities in the country, one group is attempting to bring people together in a new project called “the party line.”
Earlier this month a payphone was installed in downtown Abilene, and another one was installed in San Francisco. When someone picks up the handset on one phone, it automatically rings the other, where hopefully someone will be there ready to answer.
Logan Ivey is the social media producer for Matter Neuroscience. The company is trying to understand the science behind happiness and then use what it’s learned to help make others happy.
He says they hope that this specific project will help counter the heated way we talk about politics these days by pushing those who disagree to have meaningful conversations. The goal is to learn that they are not as different as they may believe.“
So we want people from San Francisco and people in Abilene, Texas, to call each other and kind of find that common ground of two things that make them happy,” Ivey said. “Whether it’s family or church or hanging out with friends or eating good food.”
Stephanie Faries, a resident of Abilene, was one of the first people to use the phone.
“It was pretty cordial, he seemed like a pretty nice guy,” she said. “There was no anger or anything; it was just a talk with a guy that you don’t know.”
And while the project’s organizers aren’t aiming for users to engage in political conversations… Faries’ conversation did end up there…
“He was like I'm not necessarily a Democrat, but he said that his family went from supporting the democrats to supporting Trump, and so that caused a strain on his family,” Faries said. “And I was like, I'm not necessarily a Republican or a Democrat, I'm more independent because I know there is so much good stuff on both sides and there can be a lot of propaganda.”
Although Matter Neuroscience does scientific research into happiness, this project is more of an art piece or social experiment.
Arlene Kasselman, one of the co-founders of Seven and One Books, said she agreed to have the phone installed outside her store for several reasons.
“First of all, when they emailed me, I saw the phrase art installation. I love art and I was like okay that’s fascinating,” Kasselman said. “Then there was an experiment tied to it, and I thought, okay, that’s interesting. But more than anything, I think it was the idea that maybe we could have more positive interactions throughout the day in a time where people are feeling so separated.”
A plaque on the phone explains that the hostile conversations often associated with political debates raise cortisol levels, which increase stress, but when we have positive conversations, they lower cortisol and increase dopamine, thus making the speaker less stressed and happier. The goal is that having positive conversations over the Party Line will help make people more happy.
Logan Ivey emphasized that in these conversations, no one needs to change their minds. He hopes that people grow more comfortable talking with someone they might disagree with.
“What we are promoting is having friendly conversations with anyone. and that could be with your friends and family and people that you're close with or it could be those people that you totally disagree with,” Ivey said.
Matter Neuroscience is recording each of the conversations made on the phone, and they’ll use the recordings on the company’s social media, however they will remove any names or private information.
The Party-Line phone will be outside Seven and One Books in downtown Abilene, available for anyone who’s ready to make a human-though-long-distance connection—at least until mid-February.