Office of Community And Belonging Spring Read Initiative

Join the campus Spring Read initiative from the Office of Community & Belonging.

Each spring our office will feature book selection centering personal growth and skills to cultivate connection, belonging, community building, dialogue and meaningful engagement across differences. Our inaugural Spring Read for 2026 will feature the book “Conversations With People Who Hate Me: 12 Things I Learned From Talking to Internet Strangers”, by writer, author, and digital media producer Dylan Marron who will join later this Spring for a campus talk.

Sign up here to join the campus read this February/March and receive a complimentary book copy!  Peer reading groups will also be available for participants to read, process, and discuss together in community.

Scan the QR Code below to sign up.

Below is a brief description of the book, “Conversations With People Who Hate Me”

“Conversations with People Who Hate Me: 12 Things I Learned from Talking to Internet Strangers” by Dylan Marron. A book based on his podcast, which connects people who have clashed online for phone conversations to find common ground. It’s a guide to navigating difficult conversations, exploring human connection, and finding empathy in a divided world, offering insights on moving beyond online vitriol through radical empathy and understanding. The book shares lessons from these social experiments, arguing that connection is possible even with those you vehemently disagree with.

Key themes and takeaways

Radical empathy: The book promotes extending compassion to others while still holding them accountable, viewing conversation as a “dance” rather than a “sport”.

Humanizing the “other”: It explores what happens when online adversaries step out from behind the keyboard to reveal the human on the other side of the screen.

A guide for difficult conversations: It serves as both a guide and a permission slip for those who believe connection is possible, even in an era of division.