How do you feel about making friends with people with different political opinions?

[Xara]

i’m honestly,, not a huge politics person. i like to keep myself informed and see what others have to say but it hasn’t ever really been a topic that i’ve inserted myself into aha. however, like others have said, it all depends on the topic. if your opinions come from a place of judgment or hatred, i wouldn’t really feel comfortable hanging out with you. for example, from a personal standpoint, as a member of the lgbtq+ community, i have no desire to hang around anyone who is homophobic or “doesn’t believe in it”. if you consider my sexuality to be a sin, unusual or gross, i’m better off without your friendship lol.

i also don’t want to be friends with anyone who supports trump - you only have to search up his name or watch the news to know of all the horrible things he has said and done. if you know about all of that and still support him, i don’t wanna associate with anyone like that lmao.

 

[TaylaJade]

Due to the nature of my job, I unfortunately have to keep up with politics (which is one aspect I hate about it), but usually I don't talk about it with friends or family much. It just doesn't interest me. Australian politics can be a circus sometimes, but it's nothing compared to what other countries (*the US*) experience. I live in a very liberal/socially progressive city (probably one of the most socially progressive in the world tbh, except the fact we're under strict quarantine conditions atm), so it's easy to find friends at work/Uni who have similar views and beliefs as me.

I couldn't be friends with someone who was bigoted (homophobic, sexist, racist, ableist, etc...), that's for sure. But I feel that's just part of being a decent human being.

 

[Corrie]

As long as they aren't being hateful towards anybody or aren't thrusting their beliefs in my face 24/7 then we chill.

 

[cornimer]

Depends on what those opinions are. I couldn't be friends with someone whose "opinions" revolve around other human beings receiving less than equitable treatment or rights (eg someone who is anti-LGBTQ+, racist etc.) It's bad enough I have to hear bigoted comments from family members, I wouldn't want to voluntarily spend my time hearing more. I could probably be friends with someone who has differing opinions that don't infringe on people's rights.

 

[Hypno KK]

wtf is the "far left" though

I think it means people who lean extremely to the left. I've never been much into politics though, so I could be misinterpreting its original meaning.

EDIT: Just looked up the phrase, and apparently it has "different definitions" (according to Wikipedia. But then again, I don't trust all the information on that website too much).

I'm pretty sure you're misinterpreting, and yes, there are different definitions. I'm very, very left-wing and there's really no such thing as "far left" in any way that's comparable to the "far-right". Are people talking about anarchists? The authoritarian left? Etc. etc. It's basically a phrase that "both sides" people love but it's meaningless.

left wing and right wing extremists are incomparable. one (should be obvious) is way worse than the other

This too. In any case I think it's pointless, there are no "left wing extremists" of any note in the 21st century. I really can't think of any recent major events like mass shootings or terrorist attacks perpretated by left wing extremists.

 

[tumut]

I'm pretty sure you're misinterpreting, and yes, there are different definitions. I'm very, very left-wing and there's really no such thing as "far left" in any way that's comparable to the "far-right". Are people talking about anarchists? The authoritarian left? Etc. etc. It's basically a phrase that "both sides" people love but it's meaningless.



This too. In any case I think it's pointless, there are no "left wing extremists" of any note in the 21st century. I really can't think of any recent major events like mass shootings or terrorist attacks perpretated by left wing extremists.

The only place left wing extremists actually exist is like in parts of South Asia where theres Marxist terrorist organizations, but at least in the West they're basically non-existent.

Most of the "rioters and looters" in recent events were instigated by police anyway who literally left bricks out to try to make the protests violent so they have more of an excuse to use violent force. Not to mention theres videos of police in Minneapolis slashing people's tires and shooting rubber bullets at people standing on their front porches observing the protest.

The whole "antifa" as an actual organized group conspiracy is something right wingers and liberal centrists made up so they can invalidate progressive movements by having an imaginary equivalent to the many far right extremist groups.

 

[Hypno KK]

The only place left wing extremists actually exist is like in parts of South Asia where theres Marxist terrorist organizations, but at least in the West they're basically non-existent.

Most of the "rioters and looters" in recent events were instigated by police anyway who literally left bricks out to try to make the protests violent so they have more of an excuse to use violent force. Not to mention theres videos of police in Minneapolis slashing people's tires and shooting rubber bullets at people standing on their front porches observing the protest.

The whole "antifa" as an actual organized group conspiracy is something right wingers and liberal centrists made up so they can invalidate progressive movements by having an imaginary equivalent to the many far right extremist groups.

Exactly. People talk like there's left wing extremists going around hurting people in European and North American streets and that's not the case. I could be wrong but I think in South Asia they're not very active now and some have disbanded.

You're spot on about so much of the violence in protests being instigated or started by cops. Also, a lot of looters and rioters aren't necessarily "insiders" or politically motivated. Meanwhile, there's been instances of right-wing extremists killing or severely injuring peaceful protesters by doing things like driving cars into the crowd.

Conflating "antifa" with a small number of people who use black bloc tactics or might not even be left-wing or politically motivated is really dangerous. "Antifa" just means anti-fascist and traditionally has included people from multiple points of the political spectrum or using various tactics. Framing being against fascism as something bad and dangerous is incredibly suspicious tbh. :/ I don't think antifa conspiracy theories are as prevalent here in Europe but the "both sides are equally bad" does and it's used to dismiss people protesting actual issues by just lumping them with a few whose actions they disapprove.

 

[Lightspring]

I know I have posted here before, but I just wanted to say something. A lot of acquaintances in my social media feed are saying, “if you support x then we can’t be friends/block me” “you’re being (words ending in -ist, -phobic)”, and overall name calling. I just find that so absurd. It just makes me sad to see the friends that I have made saying such hateful things targeting others if they don’t share the same opinion. I thought we were supposed to be level headed and accepting, not angry and pointing fingers at each other. I’m a poc, and it doesn’t matter the party, we can‘t step into a brighter future if everyone’s constantly angry.
Feel free to disagree with me. I’m not here to express anything specific about politics, just my observations.
The point is that I will still be friends with someone even if they have different beliefs.

 

[nightxshift]

I'd never be friends with a Trump supporter. They might say ''oh but you're not respecting my opinion'', how could I respect an opinion that promotes hating on someone for their race, sexuality, gender etc... nO❤

 

[Mezzanine]

Deleted

 

[Ghost Of Mascevanje]

I'm pretty sure you're misinterpreting, and yes, there are different definitions. I'm very, very left-wing and there's really no such thing as "far left" in any way that's comparable to the "far-right". Are people talking about anarchists? The authoritarian left? Etc. etc. It's basically a phrase that "both sides" people love but it's meaningless.

Either way, I still stand by what I said earlier on.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

I generally don't talk politics with my friends so idrc what their views are. as long as they believe in human rights, don't have an overinflated ego based on their views, and aren't close-minded with their views, they're fine by me.

 

[mayortiffany]

Re: left wing extremists, take a look at the FLQ in Canada and FARC in Colombia - to say that the left wing cannot be historically violent or 'bad' is simply not accurate. Maoist China and Stalinist Russia immediately jump to mind as historical regimes who could (in a very simplistic way) be seen falling on the left politically, but in which there was a great deal of suffering.

Both the left and the right wing can espouse ideas that maybe would do more harm than good, could be misinformed...

As someone who studies politics in college, I have a lot to say about the right/left spectrum and how it often obscures the great variety of political beliefs. You could be right-wing libertarian, left-wing authoritarian. You can have some beliefs that are right-wing and some that are left. You can be hateful and be from the right or the left.

I personally cannot see myself being friends with someone who is unable to see these kinds of nuances and who sees the world in black & white, good & evil, who is not open to new ideas and to growth.

It's also not like people are giving you a list of every single political belief they have when you first meet them, and inform you as they change. A lot of people's political beliefs may be unspoken.

I am not personally a Trump supporter, but I can tell you now, an American is probably friends with, or at least acquaintances with, a lot more Trump supporters than you may think.

 

[Hypno KK]

Re: left wing extremists, take a look at the FLQ in Canada and FARC in Colombia - to say that the left wing cannot be historically violent or 'bad' is simply not accurate. Maoist China and Stalinist Russia immediately jump to mind as historical regimes who could (in a very simplistic way) be seen falling on the left politically, but in which there was a great deal of suffering.

Nobody's said this.

 

[mayortiffany]

Nobody's said this.

You would be surprised. I have met a surprising amount of people in real life who would say that the left wing is naturally 'good' and the right wing naturally 'bad'.

As you can imagine, in my experience, they not also people who are relatively open to hearing perspectives that pushback against their own (and that are expressed in a respectful manner) even though they claim to be open to such feedback.

 

[seliph]

racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic/etc aren't attacks or insults and if you see them as such then you probably are at least one of those things.

of course it hurts to be called them because they aren't positive things to be, but the main thing is they are words that describe your present behaviour/mindset. instead of immediately going on the defense you should remember these traits can be worked on and changed, listen to the group(s) you've affected, and seek what you can do to not be seen as such. your initial response should never be "no i'm not" but instead "what did i do and how is it hurtful, and how can i prevent this in the future"

 

[Saylor]

My friends and I are very open with each other about our political opinions and I don't agree with all of them on everything, but our differences mostly have to do with how to resolve certain issues. I don't wanna be friends with anyone who holds harmful views about people (racists, transphobes, etc.) or is apathetic about injustices.

 

[Hypno KK]

You would be surprised. I have met a surprising amount of people in real life who would say that the left wing is naturally 'good' and the right wing naturally 'bad'.

As you can imagine, in my experience, they not also people who are relatively open to hearing perspectives that pushback against their own (and that are expressed in a respectful manner) even though they claim to be open to such feedback.

I was referring to this thread.

I also personally have 0 interest in listening to right wing perspectives in a respectful manner, so that wouldn't bother me anyway.

 

[mayortiffany]

I was referring to this thread.

I also personally have 0 interest in listening to right wing perspectives in a respectful manner, so that wouldn't bother me anyway.

Ah, I see. Looks like we had a bit of a miscommunication there about what frame of reference we were referring to, apologies on that!

I think this is very much affected by my own experience as a political science student and as a former debater and being forced to grapple with perspectives from across the political spectrum, but I personally am not as bound to political perspectives, to say that one 'wing' is inherently worth listening more to than others because of the label that has been attached to it.

I think it may also be influenced from living in a country where our 'right wing' is not actually that right wing when you compare it to the United States. Like, the Canadian Conservative party would probably be more like the right-leaning members of the Democratic party! Thinking about how politics is seen in different countries and cultures is really interesting to me.

Personally, I am friends with people who would be considered 'right wing' in the countries in which they live but who would absolutely not be considered 'right wing' in the United States (more 'left wing'). Similarly, there are people who might be considered 'far left' in their country but would more be 'centre' in the United States. Left/right labels can be very relative depending on where you are in the world.

 

[seliph]

Ah, I see. Looks like we had a bit of a miscommunication there about what frame of reference we were referring to, apologies on that!

I think this is very much affected by my own experience as a political science student and as a former debater and being forced to grapple with perspectives from across the political spectrum, but I personally am not as bound to political perspectives, to say that one 'wing' is inherently worth listening more to than others because of the label that has been attached to it.

I think it may also be influenced from living in a country where our 'right wing' is not actually that right wing when you compare it to the United States. Like, the Canadian Conservative party would probably be more like the right-leaning members of the Democratic party! Thinking about how politics is seen in different countries and cultures is really interesting to me.

hi fellow canadian, i can assure you we have an equally terrifying right wing, our conservatives are just better at smiling about it and covering it up. it's our liberals who are more like the dems in the US.

if you want to look into it you should research what's been happening to indigenous people since the very beginning.