By Howard Packowitz and WZND Radio

NORMAL Former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said Americans have to learn to disagree with each other from a position of understanding, instead of contempt.

Speaking at Illinois State University Friday night, Lynch said the current climate is polarized and ugly.

She said people have to listen to each other, just as police and minorities have done in an attempt to build trust.

Lynch said race is only part of the current divide. She said people are separated by rural versus urban communities, politics, and the places they turn to get their news.

“We increasingly function in these silos of thought where we tend to spend time with those with whom we already agree. But, I have to tell you, my friends, we have got to break those silos down.”

Lynch said one of her toughest challenges as President Obama’s Attorney General was mending ties between law enforcement and communities.

She urged people to listen and respect people who hold different views.

“Listen to your peers, listen to your neighbors, your family, your friends, listen to your fellow Americans,” Lynch said.

“And when you get up from this conversation, you could still agree to disagree, but from a position of understanding, and not contempt,” she added.

Lynch was the featured speaker at Friday’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Cultural Dinner in the Brown Ballroom I of ISU’s Bone Student Center.

An ISU spokesman said the event was sold out.

Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]