Braver Angels Launches Citizens Commission on Immigration to Find Common Ground
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Asia Tabb
AIRED; September 5, 2025
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Immigration has long been one of the most divisive issues in American politics. Now, Braver Angels, a national nonprofit dedicated to reducing political polarization, is taking on the challenge with its new two-year initiative: the Citizens Commission on Immigration.
“The mission of Braver Angels is to address polarization and enable people to have courageous connections across the divide,” said David Lapp, Director of the Working People Project at Braver Angels. “We want the connections and friendships that form at the local level—reds, blues, independents meeting each other—to influence the larger political culture and the public conversation on polarized issues.”
The initiative grew out of the organization’s 2024 National Convention, where more than 700 delegates—split evenly between conservative, liberal, and independent members—voted to focus on immigration. “Our delegates just sensed that this is an issue driving elections and dominating the media,” Lapp explained. “Congress hasn’t passed major immigration legislation in decades, and yet people from all sides agree it’s needed. Delegates saw the problem and sensed an opportunity to be part of the debate in a constructive way.”
The commission is organizing common ground workshops and Braver Angels debates across the country, including in South Central Pennsylvania. On October 4, Lancaster County will host a debate on whether undocumented immigrants should have a way to regularize their status. A week later, Camp Hill will host a workshop with seven conservatives and seven liberals tasked with finding unanimous points of agreement on immigration.
“At these workshops, if even one person objects to a proposal, it comes off the list,” Lapp said. “But what’s remarkable is that people are still finding 20 to 30 points of agreement per workshop.”
Those findings will be shared with local members of Congress and ultimately compiled into a Report to the Nation in early 2027. The goal is to influence lawmakers not with a single policy agenda, but by modeling bipartisan problem-solving.
“Braver Angels doesn’t have a position on immigration,” Lapp emphasized. “We’re not a conservative or liberal organization. What we want members of Congress to do is recognize that we the people are meeting in our communities, finding points of agreement, and working in good faith. We want Congress to do the same.”
Despite the deep divides, Lapp is optimistic. He pointed to examples already emerging: “In one workshop, participants agreed on finding a way to legalize the status of Dreamers, while also supporting e-verify for employers. One idea might sound more liberal, the other more conservative—but people said, ‘these are two sensible ideas.’”
For Lapp, that’s the real promise of the Citizens Commission on Immigration. “Instead of polarization all day, every day, let’s actually solve our problems,” he said. “This is our attempt to help address that.”
