Alex Reinoso, a 33-year-old liberal New Yorker, has been posting fliers around the city seeking conservative thinkers to engage in conversation with him.
“Hi, I’m Alex. I’m a liberal. All of my friends are liberal. My newsfeed is one-sided. Are you conservative and dealing with the same issue? If so I’d like to talk. We'll take things slow at first and see where it goes from there” the flier reads.
The advertising professional says he came up with the idea after President Donald Trump's travel ban was implemented in January.
Reinoso participated in the Women's March as well as protests at John F. Kennedy Airport, but he said these actions did not foster engaging conversations about politics with people who think differently than himself.
Reinoso said the objective of putting up the fliers was to foster the same kind of open conversations he says his parents had with him while he was growing up in Florida.
To Reinoso's surpise, the ad spread across social media and prompted calls from all over the country, including the Midwest.
He has spoken to conservatives from as far as Nebraska.
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"There's been a positive response on the ad. More liberals have come forward and conservatives think it's a great way to start convo," Reinoso said.
Although he has also recieved negative feedback, including the tearing down of some of his fliers, Reinoso says he is still motivated to continue the project.
Reinoso compares the project to dating, saying many of the calls have led to meaningful in person conversations.
Reinoso has yet to deteremine how he wants to document his experiences and conversations, but he hopes other people will follow in his footsteps.
"I would like more people to do what I'm doing" Reinoso said.
