How to Talk to “The Enemy” with Larry Rosen

Politics can feel like a loyalty test now. Like you are either on the right team, or you are a threat. In this conversation with Larry Rosen, attorney turned mediator and host of The Enemies Project YouTube docuseries, we talk about what happens when people stop seeing each other as humans and start treating politics like a team sport. Larry’s work sits right in the middle of the biggest problems in political polarization and social division: we assume intention, we fill in the blanks with the worst story, and we turn disagreement into moral war. We unpack why conflict is rarely just about the surface issue, how “enemy making” works, and why curiosity feels like betrayal when the nervous system is in threat mode. We also get into Larry’s approach to depolarization and conflict resolution, including rapport-building, extreme perspective taking, and the moment that changes everything: helping people understand what the other person is trying to protect. It is not about forcing agreement. It is about making it harder to keep the other side as a cartoon, and easier to have hard conversations without dehumanising each other. If you care about bridging the political divide, civil discourse, and how to talk to people you disagree with without damaging your relationships beyond repair, this one will land. It is a reminder that healing is not soft, and it is not naive; it is one of the only paths out of the loop we are stuck in. CHAPTER MARKERS: 00:00 Introduction 00:22 Meet Larry Rosen 02:50 From Lawyer to Mediator 05:43 Why Enemies Project Started 12:20 Enemies Project Format 15:49 Extreme Perspective Taking 19:37 Healthy Conflict Zone 23:33 Platforming and Safety 30:38 Casting Real Enemies 34:29 Why Activists Fight 35:39 Low Empathy And AI 42:22 Future Of Enemies Project RESOURCES MENTIONED: https://www.enemiesproject.org/ Larry's Good for the Soul:    • Friends Celebrate Found Cell Phone || Vira...   LINKS: On Instagram   / wevegottotalk   On YouTube:    / @wevegottotalk   On Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0qJVgTv... How to find Nicole https://nicolefonarow.com/ How to find Jolene https://dibledough.com/