For generations, we've been handed expectations about what it means to be a man, what it means to be a woman, how we're supposed to behave, what roles we're supposed to fill, and even whose voice deserves to be heard. But how much of what we consider "normal" is actually natural—and how much was taught to us?

In Part 5 of Conversations We Avoid, we're talking about the gender divide and the uncomfortable questions surrounding it.

We’ll dig into gender inequality in the workplace, education, leadership, authority, and everyday life. We'll talk about stereotypes, double standards, respect, and the assumptions we make about people before we ever take the time to understand them. And we'll also step into one of the most contentious parts of the conversation: gender identity—and why conversations about it so often turn into battles instead of opportunities to understand one another.

This isn't about declaring one gender the winner. It's about asking why these divisions exist, where they came from, who they affect, and whether we're willing to question the rules we've inherited.

Because if we're serious about closing the divide, we have to be willing to talk about the things that make us uncomfortable.

What if the racial divisions we see today make more sense when we understand the history we were never fully taught? In this episode of From Dirt We Grow, we continue with part 4 of the conversations we avoid series with the topic of the racial divide so prominent in society.

Before we can have progressive discourse about the subject, we need to be properly informed with the facts. Not the white-washed, selective history that's often taught in schools across America, but going beyond slavery and asking what happened afterward is an important piece of the puzzle that matters more to understanding how we got here. From Jim Crow and segregation to redlining, housing, education, healthcare, banking, employment, and the criminal justice system, this episode looks at how inequality can become embedded in systems—and how the effects of history can continue across generations.

We’ll also talk about white privilege, inherited advantage, personal responsibility, unconscious bias, and the assumptions people can bring into positions of authority. This is a conversation about what we inherited.

Truth and understanding go a long way toward breaking the barriers kept in place to keep us divided. Because united we stand, divided we fall.

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*intro/outro audio: The Plot Thickens by Joshua Spacht

Owner: Soundstripe, Inc.

What if America isn't actually as divided as we think it is?

Wesley Warshawer is a Fulbright Scholar, finance professional, and lifelong traveler who has spent years stepping outside the environments that shaped his worldview. At 19, a semester studying abroad in India changed the way he saw the world. Years later, his scholarship took him to South Korea, where he studied alongside hundreds of students from dozens of countries. Wesley gave up his apartment, sold most of his possessions, and spent more than 18 months driving through rural and conservative America while working remotely—followed by another three years traveling through Latin America and Africa.

And what he discovered challenged one of the biggest narratives surrounding America: Maybe we're not as divided as we think we are.

In this conversation, we're talking about what happens when we leave our bubbles, meet people who don't think like us, and become willing to get uncomfortable enough to actually listen. Are Americans really as divided as we're told? What do we have in common that we rarely talk about?

Sometimes the first step toward finding common ground is simply being willing to step outside the comfort of our own tiny bubble.

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*intro/outro audio: The Plot Thickens by Joshua Spacht

Owner: Soundstripe, Inc.