For seven seasons, the people behind WTTW’s “Firsthand” documentary series have gathered to figure out what subject to focus their efforts. In previous years, co-executive producers Dan Protess and Anne Gleason and their team have centered such topics as segregation, coronavirus, poverty, homelessness and life after prison. This season is about the state of American democracy and how people in the Chicago area are fighting for democracy in one way or another.
“My framing device is that chant you often hear at protests: ‘This is what democracy looks like!'” Protess said. “Unless you’re a political scientist, it’s a bit hard to wrap your brain around what democracy does look like. We’re taught in school that democracy is your role as a citizen, and democracy is to show up and vote once every two or four years. We wanted to look at, what are the other faces of democracy? What are other roles that citizens can take to participate?”
“Firsthand: Democracy” features five people filmed over the course of last summer and fall, including Isabel Aquilar, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Mexico who volunteers as a tutor for immigrants; Maryanne Colter, who teaches people how to tone down toxic partisanship; Julee Mortensen, a 72-year-old suburban grandmother who organizes and participates in protests; Miten Patel, an Evanston Township High School teacher and British-born Indian immigrant who encourages his students to engage with the political process; and Camille Williams, whose mother was murdered when she was 6 years old, and who works to ensure those impacted by the legal system know their rights, including the formerly incarcerated.
Protess is hoping that, given the nation’s 250th anniversary, this season will draw audiences from other cities. The one thing he wants people to take away: “That democracy is a verb, a participatory sport. I’m hoping these stories will provide people with models of roles that they might be able to play, whether it’s facilitating dialogue, maybe not on a mass scale like Maryanne, but maybe within their family or their workplace, or as educators doing their part.
“We all have a role to play if we want to have a healthy, thriving democracy,” he added. “I think most people do, but they’ve forgotten, in no small part because of social media, what their role is beyond shouting in the comments section.”
Patel teaches AP government and politics. He found education after banking and journalism didn’t hold his attention. When he began his role as educator, things like books and history weren’t points of contention, whereas now there’s greater control over what can and cannot be done inside the classroom. But in a glimpse of Patel in front of his class in the series, his enthusiasm is palpable as he engages in conversations with his students, sparking dialogue that makes them think. Executive orders and actions on the Congressional floor are debated and students question those in power in their workplace or at school, including local legislators.
Right now, Patel is looking forward to the Illinois primary on March 17, showing underclassmen what it is to vote, so they’re not only seeing it when they experience it at age 18.
“There’s no way to sugarcoat it,” Patel said. “You need to know what’s happening, where you fall in, in terms of what is happening and what you can do if something disrupts or violates your constitutional rights. How do I impress upon these young adults not to be so disenfranchised, so apathetic that they don’t take that huge civic right that they have to vote when the time is appropriate? I keep saying it and not moving away from it, because I truly believe in it. Understanding that triangle relationship between legislative, executive and judicial is probably one of the most important things I could impress upon these young adults.”
Colter “solves democracy one conversation at a time,” by volunteering with the nonprofit Braver Angels, an organization created in 2016 to show individuals how to disagree on topics like politics without changing one’s views on issues. She does that by conducting workshops on how to talk with one another.
“One of our new phrases that we’re using is: how can we choose connection over domination?” Colter said. “Since the last election, my phone’s been ringing off the hook with churches, colleges, high schools, and now middle schools. The temperature is rising and we need to rise with it. Listening to somebody is not the same as agreeing with them. It’s OK to disagree. How do we make that constructive? How can we get in front of more people to teach them how to have respectful dialogue and understanding?”
The situation is so pervasive that a Northwestern University psychology professor created a research-backed game to equip people with a method for teaching productive disagreement. The goal is to understand each other’s reasoning well enough that players can visualize “why” they disagree. A 2025 study by Northwestern University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill revealed it is possible to change an opinion of someone with an opposing view by bridging identity divides, viewing another person’s perspective, and utilizing personal narratives. Researchers found that those who emphasized their political knowledge or bombarded folks with facts to prove them wrong wasn’t effective.
Colter says Braver Angels Illinois has at least four events a month. Protess said regardless of avenue, the conversation is not mediated by an algorithm that surrounds us with people who agree with us.“Sometimes it’s more what you need to unlearn than what you need to learn,” Colter said. “There’s no substitute for sitting down across the table and having a one-on-one conversation with somebody that you know sees something differently. We always tell people, listen for values and concerns, and therein, you’ll find the common ground of the issue.”
WTTW is partnering with Braver Angels of Illinois, Illinois America 250, Illinois Humanities, and Mikva Challenge to host community conversations on democracy throughout the year. All five “Firsthand” films launch Feb. 16 at wttw.com/firsthand. The Democracy initiative kicks off the same day at WTTW studios 5:30 and 10 p.m. on “Chicago Tonight.”
