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It’s six months next week that that war began,” says Velshi. “With every passing day, it’s advantage Russia. The world’s heart is with Ukraine on this.”

We need to back up that heart with continued action. Here’s how to help preserve life and democracy in Ukraine. Here’s how:

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WATCH: Project Save Democracy with Ali Velshi

At a Citizen event this week, the MSNBC anchor talked about Ukraine, democracy, empathy — and what we all need to do to save our democracy

WATCH: Project Save Democracy with Ali Velshi

At a Citizen event this week, the MSNBC anchor talked about Ukraine, democracy, empathy — and what we all need to do to save our democracy

MSNBC anchor (and Citizen board member) Ali Velshi joined Citizen co-founder and co-executive director Larry Platt and 140 guests at Fitler Club Monday for a conversation about Velshi’s time on the frontlines of Russia’s war on Ukraine — and the means to preserve ever-fragile democracy.

“Project Save Democracy” began with a clip from Velshi’s Warsaw interview with a 15-year-old Ukrainian Nastya Shpot who had left her father behind to seek refuge in Poland. As tears streamed down Shpot’s otherwise composed face, she and Velshi spoke about her background, fears and dreams. It was a rare, raw, and incredibly real five minutes — a lifetime in television reporting.

“I wanted to make sure when I got to Ukraine, my viewers were meeting people through me. My reporting had to be about people: Hungarian people, Ukrainian people, Polish people. War is on a map. It is abstract,” says Ali Velshi.

The power of capturing real stories, having real in-person conversations, and taking meaningful personal action became a theme of the evening. Velshi recounted a recent trip to Alabama to interview reproductive healthcare providers impacted by the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs vs. Jackson.

“At MSNBC, we’re talking about abortion, about Roe v. Wade, as an abstraction. But you go to Alabama as I just did, and you realize: It’s medieval. The cruelty involved in the laws that are meant to prevent women from accessing reproductive care, it’s about control,” he says.

The point, in Alabama as in Ukraine: It takes meeting people, experiencing what they’re experiencing, to understand and create meaningful change. As Velshi says, “You can’t convince people of something remotely.”

At this moment of intense, seemingly intractable division in America, making connections, finding common ground, is an essential starting point to preserving democracy — something Velshi speaks about eloquently and passionately.

Watch the full video of the event below:

View photos from the event below:

140 guests in the ballroom at The Fitler Club.
Ali Velshi (right) in conversation with Citizen co-founder and co-executive director Larry Platt.
John B. Kelly III leans in.
Guests at Project Save Democracy.
A guest asks Ali about trustworthy news sources.
A guests explains how joining a neighborhood conversation changed the conversation.
Larry Platt (left) and Ali Velshi, onstage.
Velshi speaks to guests, including Marjorie Margolies.

MORE CITIZEN EVENTS TO CATCH UP ON

Watch: Citizen Book Club with Dan Pfeiffer

The Color of Law: Watch Our Higginbotham Mural Kickoff

WATCH: Run for Something

Watch: Equity and Growth: Oxymoron No Longer?

Watch: Not Your Average Voter Canvass Training

 

 

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