Recently, Taylor Swift has been criticized for her public friendship with Donald Trump supporters after supporting Kamala Harris in the upcoming election. Brittany Mahomes, the wife of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, appeared to support Trump on Instagram about a month ago, and Swift has since been spotted with her. are.
Although many have questioned her activism and commitment to politics following this apparent contradiction in behavior, friendship transcends politics and should not affect our personal relationships. Some people think so.
While it’s very important to be surrounded by diverse perspectives, there are also certain topics that reflect your values and morals. Generally speaking, especially before an election like this one, politics is definitely an indicator of your priorities and what you care about.
Politics has a tangible impact on all of our lives, disproportionately affecting marginalized groups. Therefore, supporting a politician or voting for your representative is not only a personal choice, but also has real consequences for those around you.
It is okay to disagree about how to achieve a particular policy or political goal, and it should be encouraged. Healthy conversations can help you understand different perspectives and approaches to the world outside of yourself. While not all of my friends feel exactly the same way about every issue, they share my core beliefs and understand the importance of politics.
Deal breakers exist in every relationship and are essential for outlining what is and is not acceptable in a friendship. Setting boundaries for yourself so that those around you can bring you happiness and joy is critical to building fulfilling friendships. Despite this common practice, people seem to be sensitive about the topic of political deal breakdowns. It’s natural to be incompatible with someone whose beliefs are significantly different from yours, and it’s perfectly fine to enforce that as a requirement for friendship.
Real, genuine friendship requires the ability to approach any topic. I don’t understand how having different political opinions can affect a friendship if you can’t find common ground on the most important issues. Specifically, on issues directly related to identity, the political opinions of others are directly correlated with respect for other identities and how they should be treated. Indifference to politics and who your friends are voting for cannot be tolerated when the rights of others are at stake. With so much at stake, it’s more important than ever to care about our country’s future and how our elections affect other countries.
Ultimately, I think we can disagree on how to achieve various political goals, but I don’t think we can agree on the fundamental issues themselves. If someone thinks the focus should be on educating others and increasing access to contraception to reduce unwanted pregnancies, that’s fine, but if that comes at the expense of legal abortion. If so, I’d draw the line there. If someone supports policies that harm and disrespect an entire group of people, I have no respect for that person’s opinion as a whole.
When someone is willing to ignore politics for the sake of friendship, it’s obvious that they don’t care or are very committed to their beliefs. Swift has used her activism throughout her career since the documentary “Miss Americana” to assert many times that many of these issues are important to her. Specifically, her association with Mahomes makes her support for the LGBTQ+ community seem less genuine, given how this election affects gay people.
It’s hard to make tough decisions in the name of politics, but because of Swift’s influence, who she is seen as and what she says has a huge impact on her fans and young voters. Similarly, if you want to care and respect your friends and colleagues who are directly affected by politics, avoid surrounding yourself with people who vote against their rights and protections.
Delaney Rauscher Adams thinks you should vote. Contact her at (email protected).
