The Neutrality Trap: Disrupting and Connecting for Social Change (Book)

Introduction

The message at the heart of The Neutrality Trap is that, when it comes to the important social issues that face us today, avoiding conflict is a mistake. We need conflict, engagement, and disruption in order to make it to the other side and progress toward the worthy goal of social justice.

Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society.  – John Lewis, Across That Bridge: A Vision for Change and the Future of America, pg 3

Publisher’s Description

“Work for social change through constructive engagement and systems disruption in this practical resource for social change advocates and conflict specialists.

In The Neutrality Trap, expert mediators and facilitators Bernard Mayer and Jacqueline N. Font-Guzmán deliver an insightful and practical exploration of how to understand the conflicts we face as social change agents.

You’ll learn about systems disruption and constructive engagement: how to develop the relationships and change strategies that help people, systems, and societies confront their most important social challenges. In this important book, you will:

• Discover how to challenge the status quo in an effective way
• Practice how to “get into good trouble,” and pick the battles worth fighting
• Learn to be strategic in your approach to social change and sustain your efforts over the long term

Perfect for anyone interested in progressing and achieving social justice, The Neutrality Trap is an indispensable guide to engaging in and managing the necessary conflict that comes with meaningful change.” Source – Wiley

Contents

Read Excerpt

Read Chapter 1 – Engaging and Disrupting for Social Change

Watch Videos

Book#5 Talking Books The Neutrality Trap by Bernard “Bernie” Mayer & Jacqueline N. Font-Guzmán

Listen to Podcasts

The Neutrality Trap in our Society, with Jackie Font-Guzmán and Bernie Mayer, Diversity Beyond the Checkbox

Sometimes it’s not OK to be just neutral. In fact, it can be very dangerous when talking about effecting change and establishing social justice for everyone. In this episode, hear why the problem led these Eastern Mennonite University professors, Jackie Font-Guzmán and Bernie Mayer, to co-authored “The Neutrality Trap: Disrupting and Connecting for Social Change.”

Disrupting and Connecting with Bernie Mayer, Once Upon a Conversation Podcast

Bernie Mayer, an icon in the global mediation field, a scholar, a writer, a practitioner, a teacher, a mentor and a friend, joins me today to talk about his book The Neutrality Trap, Disrupting and Connecting for Social Change.  Earlier books include: The Conflict Paradox, Seven Dilemmas at the Core of Disputes, The Dynamics of Conflict, Beyond Neutrality, and Staying With Conflict.

We talk about disrupting and connecting around larger societal issues as well as in our families and intimate relationships. Systems don’t like change. We need both disruption to spark change and connection to direct and navigate it.

Access Book

• Publisher (Wiley)
• Ebook (Kobo)
• Ebook (Perlego)

Explore Further

• Democracy Resource Hub Collection in the Commons Library
• Principles of Co-operative Conflict Resolution
• Pathways to Repair: Guides to Navigate Healing, Trust building and Human Messiness
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• Transformative Approaches to Conflict Resolution
• Social Identity and Group Norms