The Dignity Index: A Tool for Building Respect in Our Community
At Xanadu Astoria, we believe that true community thrives when we engage with each other from a place of respect, accountability, and compassion—especially when we disagree. That’s why we’re proud to share and uplift the work of The Dignity Index.
"Our disagreements aren’t causing the divisions in our country; it’s what we do when we disagree. Do we treat the other side with dignity, or do we treat them with contempt? The first brings us together; the second drives us apart." — The Dignity Index
The Dignity Index was created to help us understand that difference—and to offer a path forward. It's a framework for transforming conflict into connection, both in our families, workplaces, communities, and beyond. We encourage you to learn more, take the Dignity Pledge, and explore how you can support the dignity movement in your daily life.
🔗 Explore the tools and join the movement at: www.dignityindex.us
We’re grateful to the team at The Dignity Index for providing these resources and helping communities like ours stay strong and united through empathy and understanding.
The Dignity Index is designed to prevent violence, ease divisions, and solve problems.
The Dignity Index scores distinct phrases along an eight-point scale from contempt to dignity. Lower scores (1-4) reflect divisive language while higher scores (5-8) reflect language grounded in dignity. In its pilot season, a trained group of students supported by the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute and the Hinckley Institute of Politics scored selections from candidate speeches, debates, fundraising outreach, social media posts, and campaign ads in Utah’s federal congressional races. By focusing on the speech and not the speaker, the Dignity Index is designed to draw our attention away from the biases of partisan politics and toward the power we each have to heal our country and each other.
Building Skills for Dignified Disagreement
Honoring someone’s dignity can be difficult, especially when situations get heated. Follow these steps when stress rises – and join the movement of Americans easing divisions, preventing violence, and solving problems by choosing dignity over contempt.
Dignity Phrases
Defuse contempt when things get hot with these dignity phrases.