ONEIDA, Wisconsin – “I don’t trust anything,” Jody Oberstar put it bluntly.
The political postcards in her mailbox. The stories in the media. The campaign ads .
“It’s so hard to know what information is actually true,” she said.
A host of polls and surveys tell us many voters feel like Oberstar, especially in states like Wisconsin that are often termed “ purple ” — a color that could just as easily describe razor-thin margins of victory as the bruising nature of politics. Given her skepticism, you wouldn’t think sharing dinner with eight strangers could change her outlook.
“I think people can come together and solve problems,” said Oberstar, 42, of Pulaski. “What I see in politics is that political parties, for whatever reason, refuse to come together to solve problems. Honestly, I think events like this could help it change.”
Election town halls have focused on civil conversations
The event was a Sept. 25 Main Street Agenda town hall meeting at the Oneida Hotel. About 56 community members shared dinner at tables with a trained facilitator to discuss K-12 education. You wouldn’t think this was a recipe for harmony. Just stringing together the words book bans, gender policies, COVID-19 lockdowns and reading instruction has incited civil unrest at some school board meetings .