| View the Dialogue There are multiple books and articles critical of empathy that are coming out. I’ve reach out to all of the authors and asked the dialogue about their criticisms. Most of the critics refuse to talk with me, which I find diminishes the validity of their arguments. I find that most of the criticisms come down to a misunderstanding of the definition of empathy. One author critical of empathy, Kevin Waldman, was recently willing to dialogue and we had a wonderful conversation. His article was published in the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers entitled, “The dangerous consequences of radical empathy unchecked by reason.” Kevin criticizes “radical empathy” on campuses as performative and harmful, leading to the radicalization of students. I explained the Wholistic Definition Model of Empathy. In the end, we agreed on the importance of mutual empathy, listening and dialogue in fostering understanding and reducing extremism. I proposed using Empathy Circles to facilitate empathic listening and dialogue, aiming to bridge political and social divides. Kevin now plans to host Empathy Circles at his University to foster constructive dialogue. –Edwin Rutsch |