If a divide is a clash of cultures, crossing a divide is a blending of cultures.
Does this blending of cultures weaken your culture? Are you afraid it will sap you of your convictions or convert you? Will it, at best, be an absolute waste of your time?
Ideas flow freely when you lower your defences — and the risks of lowering your defences with dialogue are no greater than when you lower your defences with a particularly immersive movie or book.
The risks with dialogue are less than the risks of immersing yourself in a movie or book. Because with dialogue, ideas flow both ways.