In a recent column for the Lake Placid News, Naj Wikoff offers a clear-eyed, humane account of Loving Our Country, a listening project launched by John Brown Lives!. The premise is deceptively simple: ask people—especially students—whether they feel loved by their country, and listen carefully to the answers.
As Wikoff reports, the project emerged from real, local concerns: fear among communities of color amid immigration enforcement, and anxiety following federal funding cuts affecting regional nonprofits and businesses. Rather than framing the inquiry around abstract policy debates, the program centers face-to-face conversations—one person, one listener, a notepad, and trust.
Beginning with students at SUNY Plattsburgh and the University of Rochester, the initiative invites participants to reflect on belonging, care, and responsibility. What emerges, as Wikoff thoughtfully documents, is not consensus but complexity: people differ widely in how they define “country,” yet many share a deep affection for community and a sense of distance from national politics.
The student reflections are especially striking. Several describe how the act of listening—slowing down, being present—helped rebuild a sense of connection frayed by online life and post-COVID isolation. Others note a recurring theme: faith in people, even when faith in policy falters.
We’re grateful to Naj Wikoff for this careful, empathetic reporting, and to the Lake Placid News for giving space to work that values listening as a civic act. In moments of division, attention itself can be a form of care—and a starting point for rebuilding trust.