Summary

With Donald Trump’s 2024 election win, young Gen Z voters like Kate, Holly, and Rachel are grappling with deepening divides with their Trump-supporting parents.

For many, these conflicts go beyond policy disagreements, touching on core values and morality. Parents once focused on fiscal conservatism have, in some cases, embraced conspiracy theories, creating painful rifts.

Studies suggest political divisions are increasingly seen as moral judgments, fostering a “mega-identity” where political views signify personal decency.

For these young adults, maintaining family connections amidst such ideological fractures has become challenging.

    • futatorius@lemm.ee
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      7 days ago

      You didn’t get to choose your parents. And there’s no reason to force anyone to continue associating with toxic shitheads with no capacity for critical thought.

      • lath@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        If you want to change the world, you can’t escape the confrontation.

          • lath@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            Agreed. But there’s a lot of blame going around that says otherwise.

        • EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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          6 days ago

          What confrontation? The confrontation was deciding to cut them out of their lives. The only other confrontation to deal with there may or may not involve a baseball bat.

          • lath@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            People won’t magically disappear just because one no longer interacts with them. They’ll still exist, live their life and interact within the society we’re all a part of. One can set them aside for the majority of the time, but eventually those connections do come back to haunt and annoy.

    • cowfodder@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      Why would I want to continue associating with someone that voted to endanger people I care about?

          • lath@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            Apparently it is. Otherwise we wouldn’t have popular comments such as “if you didn’t vote, you’re complicit” or “silence is acquiescence of fascism”. So no communication = violence, because if you run away from them, then you’re giving them free reign to implement their views.

            • wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world
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              6 days ago

              …you act like you had control over their views at any time in the past, which is hilarious. Staying is simply suffering for no benefit. Now I’m not going to kinkshame, but damn man, you should really find another way to cum; anguish is going way too far.

              • lath@lemmy.world
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                6 days ago

                Dear solitary person, who is separate from the world, uninfluenced by anyone or anything, a true beacon of independent thought, you seriously believe your views are pure and untainted? That nothing and no one can change them at any point? Or were you so defeated by your past that you no longer believe a mind can be changed?

                From you who is already beaten and wallows within the bitter taste of their tragedy, all i have gained is sadness. I am sorry you suffered and i am sorry you were unable to regain your loved ones, if they ever were such, but please, do not drag others into your suffering and instead allow them to drag you out of it.

                Minds can be changed, views can be altered. Hope exists whether we can see it or not. And in this vein, I hope you will find your happiness once more and spread that joy instead of this current unpalatable sorrow.

                Be well.

    • Bophades@midwest.social
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      7 days ago

      I didn’t choose to be born. I didn’t choose to be adopted into a dysfunctional family. I didn’t choose to be raised as a little bigot. I did choose to walk away when I grew up and started seeing how people like me and my family were hurting others. This goes far beyond mere opinion, and perhaps you ought to spend some time reasoning about why these things aren’t that important to you.

      Edit to add a word.

      • borari@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        6 days ago

        Damn. As someone who also was adopted by psycho evangelicals and has spent thousands upon thousands of dollars on therapy to unpack all the shit they left me with, I get it. ❤️

        • Bophades@midwest.social
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          6 days ago

          Eh, I get the cynicism, because it’s hard not to feel it myself. But if I can change, so can they 🤟

    • EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      6 days ago

      I think people’s values and actions are perfectly fine things to judge them on.

      We’re not talking about favorite colors here. We’re talking about people actively enabling terrorists to attack minorities without fear of consequence and voting fascists who have openly expressed their intentions to destroy our democracy into power.

      If you voted for Trump, then your “idea” is that there shouldn’t be any work or medical safety standards, no food safety laws, no environmental protection to keep companies from dumping waste wherever they want, no national parks, and no schools. And that’s just the government departments that are planned to be axed. We can talk about Operation Wetback 3 next, if you want.

    • TrickDacy@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      And you’re encouraging people to expose themselves to toxicity that is very unhealthy for them.

      • lath@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        The toxicity won’t disappear on its own. It has to be cleaned up.

          • lath@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            Yes, we’re seeing it live. Most people here don’t seem very much pleased with how time decided to deal with it though.

                  • lath@lemmy.world
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                    6 days ago

                    And either you’re expecting the people you hate to die first or for yourself to die before them. Neither of those cases actually solves the problem, so your choice is quite pointless. All you’re doing is passing on the torch to the next generation and thus maintaining the cycle of ruination.

        • EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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          6 days ago

          Socially ostracizing them is dealing with it. People aren’t sticking their heads in the sand here. They’re telling these people that their actions have consequences, and one of those consequences is exile. Cutting people out of your life is just one part of dealing with these people.

          • lath@lemmy.world
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            6 days ago

            Let me ask you this, if your kid ends up in a way not acceptable to you, will you “socially ostracize” them? Simply say “there’s nothing i can do” and cut them out of your life?

            If so, then I am sad for you. Not pity, just sadness.

            If not, then why not feel the same for your parents? Because they’re old or something like that?

            I don’t know. It’s just… eh, can’t even use ‘weird’ anymore… maybe ‘lame’ works. It’s lame to be so decisive in giving up, yet still flower it up as some sort of moral punishment.

            Yeh, people are dumb. Yeh, people can be evil. And yeh, some people are irremediable with too much wrongdoing to be forgiven. But it’s important to know the difference between these aspects and treat them accordingly. Otherwise, it’s just being lazy about it.

    • Goodmorningsunshine@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      My mom and dad literally raised me to recognize that the people they have become are shit that would hurt their own children and grandchildren in the name of their hate. So maybe they should try to get back to being decent human beings before they whine about their kids not recognizing them as such.

    • pearsaltchocolatebar@discuss.online
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      6 days ago

      Believing that women and other marginalized people aren’t people isn’t a difference of opinion. Dismantling all regulatory protections isn’t an opinion. Supporting a person who is blatantly trying to dismantle our democracy isn’t an opinion.

      It’s a cult ideology, and no one has to tolerate intolerance.

      No one has any onus to maintain contact with a person who only believes in hate, regardless of their relation to you.

      These people made the choice to support a monster, and they deserve consequences for their actions.

    • wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      I can’t possibly see why politics is so polarised

      Spoken like a true well-off middle-aged+ white cishet. ‘I don’t have any problems, so I don’t see what the big deal is!’