Opinion | You can’t be friends with someone who has different politics

Recently, Taylor Swift has been under fire for her public friendship with a Donald Trump supporter after endorsing Kamala Harris in the upcoming election. Brittany Mahomes, the wife of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, seemed to show her support for Trump through an Instagram like about a month ago, and Swift has been seen with her since then. 

Many are questioning her activism and dedication to her politics after this apparent contradiction in actions, and others believe that friendship transcends politics and shouldn’t impact our personal relationships.

While surrounding yourself with diverse perspectives is incredibly important, there are certain topics that reflect your values and morals. Generally speaking, and especially before an election like this one, politics are absolutely an indicator of your priorities and what you care about. 

Politics have a tangible impact on all of our lives and disproportionately affect marginalized groups. Because of this, supporting politicians and voting for representatives is not only a personal choice, but it has real consequences for the people around you. 

Disagreeing about certain policies or how to accomplish political goals is okay and should be encouraged. Healthy conversations can help you see different perspectives and approaches to the world outside of your own. Not all of my friends feel the exact same way about every issue, but they do share my core beliefs and understand the importance of politics.

Dealbreakers exist in every relationship and are essential to outline what can and cannot be tolerated in a friendship. Setting boundaries for yourself to make sure the people you’re around bring you happiness and joy is incredibly important for a fulfilling friendship. Despite this common practice, people seem sensitive about the topic of political dealbreakers. It makes sense that you may not be compatible with someone whose beliefs are markedly different from yours, and it is completely acceptable to enforce that as a requirement for your friendships.

In a real, genuine friendship, the ability to approach all topics is necessary. I struggle to see how having different political opinions wouldn’t affect a friendship if you couldn’t find common ground on the most important issues. Specifically, on issues that are directly related to identity, others’ political opinions correlate directly with their respect for other identities and how they should be treated. Apathy towards politics or who your friends are voting for is not something we can afford when the rights of others are on the line. Caring about the future of our country and how others will be impacted by elections is more important than ever when so much is on the line.

Ultimately, I think we can disagree on how to accomplish different political goals, but not on the fundamental issues themselves. If someone thinks we should focus on educating others and increasing birth control access to reduce unwanted pregnancies, that’s okay, but if this is at the expense of legal abortion that would be where I draw the line. If somebody supports policies that will harm and disparage entire groups of people, I cannot respect their opinions as a whole. 

If someone is willing to overlook politics for a friendship, it becomes apparent that their care and dedication to their beliefs are not that strong. Swift has capitalized on her activism throughout her career after the “Miss Americana” documentary and claimed on numerous occasions how many of these issues are important to her. Specifically, her support of the LGBTQ+ community seems less genuine due to her relationship with Mahomes because of how this election will affect queer individuals.

It is hard to make tough decisions in the name of politics, but with Swift’s influence, who she is seen with and what she says really do affect fans and young voters. Similarly, if you want to care for and respect your friends and peers who will be directly impacted by politics, don’t surround yourself with people who will vote against their rights and protections.

Delaney Rauscher Adams thinks you should vote. Reach out to her at dgr17@pitt.edu