Jennifer Lawrence covers the October issue of Vogue. It’s a classic J.Law interview, in that she talks and talks and talks. She never really had a filter and becoming a mother has only heightened that. She’s currently promoting Causeway, which she stars in and produced. J-Law plays a veteran who returns to NOLA after sustaining a traumatic brain injury in Afghanistan. While she’s definitely promoting the movie and a chunk of the interview is about that, Jennifer also gets in the Dobbs decision, women’s rights, family politics, her son Cy and motherhood in general. Yes, she confirms that she had a son and they named him Cy. Cy Maroney! Some highlights from Vogue:
On art & mothers: “Art more often than not is about one’s mother. I hesitate to say that because I would hate for somebody to go back and watch my movies, or watch this movie in particular, and think that that is the way that I’m painting my mother. My mother is a wonderful person. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t still things from my childhood that I’m working out.”
Her son: She did share that the baby is a boy, and that his name is Cy, after the postwar American painter Cy Twombly, one of Maroney’s favorite artists.
Motherhood: “It’s so scary to talk about motherhood. Only because it’s so different for everybody. If I say, It was amazing from the start, some people will think, It wasn’t amazing for me at first, and feel bad. Fortunately I have so many girlfriends who were honest. Who were like, It’s scary. You might not connect right away. You might not fall in love right away. So I felt so prepared to be forgiving. I remember walking with one of my best friends at, like, nine months, and being like, Everyone keeps saying that I will love my baby more than my cat. But that’s not true. Maybe I’ll love him as much as my cat?”
Postpartum: “The morning after I gave birth, I felt like my whole life had started over. Like, Now is day one of my life. I just stared. I was just so in love. I also fell in love with all babies everywhere. Newborns are just so amazing. They’re these pink, swollen, fragile little survivors. Now I love all babies.”
Her Republican family: “I just worked so hard in the last five years to forgive my dad and my family and try to understand: It’s different. The information they are getting is different. Their life is different…. I’ve tried to get over it and I really can’t. I can’t. I’m sorry I’m just unleashing, but I can’t f–k with people who aren’t political anymore. You live in the United States of America. You have to be political. It’s too dire. Politics are killing people.”
When Roe was overturned: She had not been entirely in Hillary Clinton’s corner, but still found it incredibly upsetting that the country elected Donald Trump. “It breaks my heart because America had the choice between a woman and a dangerous, dangerous jar of mayonnaise. And they were like, Well, we can’t have a woman. Let’s go with the jar of mayonnaise. I don’t want to disparage my family, but I know that a lot of people are in a similar position with their families. How could you raise a daughter from birth and believe that she doesn’t deserve equality? How?”
Miscarriages: Lawrence herself got pregnant in her early 20s. She one hundred percent intended to get an abortion. But before she could, “I had a miscarriage alone in Montreal.” She got pregnant again a couple years ago, while shooting Don’t Look Up. By then she was married and very much wanted to have a baby. She had another miscarriage. The second time, she had to get a D&C, the surgical procedure by which tissue is removed from the uterus. To imagine children and 18-year-olds in any sort of situation with limited options was simply too much to bear. Even more so now that she does have a baby. “I remember a million times thinking about it while I was pregnant. Thinking about the things that were happening to my body. And I had a great pregnancy. I had a very fortunate pregnancy. But every single second of my life was different. And it would occur to me sometimes: What if I was forced to do this?”
She doesn’t like President Biden or Democrats?? She was demoralized by the anemic response of Democratic leaders and what she felt was Biden’s toothless executive action. (“If anybody ever needed proof that our two-party system is a failure.”)
While I think she’s fighting a good fight on some different fronts, I’m annoyed that this 32-year-old woman still needs to create analogies like “Trump is a jar of mayonnaise” to describe modern American politics. I’m annoyed that in the year of our lord Beyonce 2022, she can’t conjure up a full-throated defense of both Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, given everything else she’s saying. Her need to semantically “both sides” modern politics ends up soft-pedaling the very real threat that Republicans face to the entire country. Sure, the mayonnaise tried to install himself as dictator via a violent coup and the mayonnaise is a rapist white supremacist, but Joe Biden didn’t wave a magic wand and fix everything! Grow up.
Cover & IG courtesy of Vogue.
I guess I’m just glad she recognizes the jar of mayonnaise is super dangerous.
Also, what happened to her eyes?
My first thought was “have her eyes… always looked like that?” (Google says no)
I’m glad for her that she’s saying what she likes (after feeling pretty fragile about media exposure from memory), although I’ve never really been able to grasp her tone/intention so don’t really “get her”.
She’s annoying.
I had the same question re her eyes. I’m thinking some work on her upper eyelids. I thought at first the pictures was Rosamund Pike…
Yeah she had an upper bleph and or a brow lift which distorted her bedroom eyes. She turned out better than Renee Z but it’s still taking away from her unique beauty.
I honestly didn’t recognize her in the cover photo. I was thinking “Is there another Jennifer Lawrence?”. Then when Kaiser mentioned ” J-Law” I was like “Really?”.
Upper blepharoplasty isn’t always an elective procedure, particularly in circumstances where “hooded” eyelids are actually affecting eyesight (Renee Zellweger, just for example). There are also other causes for hooded lids besides genetics — like a lacrimal gland that has descended — so sometimes it isn’t only the eyelid that gets lifted. (I… have googled “nonsurgical alternatives to blepharoplasty” a lot, hence all the leisure reading I’ve done.)
Trump is a jar of poison, not a fairly delicious ingredient of chicken salad.
A cracked jar of poison, that keeps bubbling over, oozing all over everything and stinking up the place. He’s like a massive toxic oil spill that never ends and lays waste to everything in its path.
Yeah lets not bring mayonnaise into this.
Seeing this, I’m reminded people in my country do things with mayonnaise that might spook Americans 😀
I assumed she meant a jar of mayo that had been sitting open out in the sun for several hours but I may have been projecting.
Lol
Which has certainly wreaked the same havoc on my GI tract as Trump… 😉
How sad. Of all people, she with her fearless mouth should be able to stake a position and I am just so sad that she is this stupid. Joe Biden did everything legal and possible to do and his DOJ is suing states to enforce his EO which is not toothless. It directs all hospitals etc taking federal money (Medicare etc) that they must perform an abortion when medically indicated to save the woman’s health and life. That’s not nothing.
She will vote Republican again. Notice her surface level understanding of the issue. JLaw sees what Biden has done/ not done in terms of how it effects her personally. It’s reminiscent of there is something about Hilary. When the Republicans are better packaged yet still deplorable, she will vote for them again
@withtheamerican while I am also disappointed that she isn’t supporting Biden here, I do wonder when this interview took place. It takes months to put together these pieces and if it was in the spring/ early summer, it might have been before the flurry of Democratic action this summer.
That’s a great point! I hope that’s the case, I normally enjoy her and this was a disappointment. I mean ffs there couldn’t have been more action taken by democrats given the numbers, and even so, they got Biden’s agenda to help all Americans pushed through.
There are a lot of libs, both mainstream Dems and those further left who are extremely disappointed with the Democratic Party, including Biden, for not doing enough to protect Roe ages ago when they had a better chance to get something done but instead ignored those uf us warning them that this was the right wing end game. Instead the party, like much of the general public, ignored those warnings and told us to stop stressing about the extremists in the GOP bc Roe would never be overturned. The Dems failed to pay attention to how much power the far right was getting & McConnell’s willingness to give them what they wanted. I’m pretty sure that’s the sentiment that Lawrence is alluding to with her statements. I think she used to spend a lot of time on SM so she may have picked up on those complaints which are fairly common on Twitter
No offense but that’s because alot of people on twitter are spreading misinfo rather than taking responsibility for this happening.
Here’s the truth:
The Democrats never had the votes to codify Roe.
Even during that brief 72 working day period Obama had a super majority Dem Senators included people like Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln, etc and others who were rated as “Pro-Life.” The House also had a significant number of “Pro-Life” Dem Congressmen/women at that time (they were wiped out after many of them voted for the ACA).
The way to protect Roe was to emphasize the importance of the courts to Democratic voters. The GOP have been preaching the importance of “voting for the courts” for decades. It’s paying off for them now. Neither Democratic leadership nor Bernie Sanders type progressives have emphasized the importance of the courts in the same manner. In fact in 2016 I was told MULTIPLE times by Sanders voting progressives I was trying to blackmail them into voting for Clinton by mentioning that Roe was on the ballot.
Bottom line:
Democrats never had the votes to codify Roe but yes, they should have been messaging about the courts a long time ago.
However, progressives are just as complicit in this tragedy as Democratic establishment. Frankly, progressives need to wake the ef up and start talking more about the courts. It doesn’t matter how many AOC type House members they elect if GOP judges block their legislation. So I’ve got more disdain toward progressive leaders than even normie Dems when it comes to this (I say that because at least Hillary Clinton was clear about how important it was to have a Dem POTUS and a Dem Senate to get more judges on the bench).
I spend way too much time on twitter, I’m well aware of who is making those complaints and that they haven’t been around very long (or if they have, they’re from the Unicorn Dream Factory liberals who also tried to destroy Obamacare because it wasn’t good enough for them) , because Democrats have been warning about this for over ten years.
To blame Democrats for not anticipating McConnell stealing a SCOTUS seat and then installing three complete activist judges, several of whom are unqualified, is like blaming an abuse victim.
Republicans have embraced fascism, that is their fault and the fault of the people voting for them.
Oh, @keaton BRAVO! You’re my hero
Bless her heart. That’s all I got.
“she can’t conjure up a full-throated defense of both Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, given everything else she’s saying. Her need to semantically “both sides” modern politics ends up soft-pedaling the very real threat that Republicans face to the entire country.” I disagree that she’s playing both sides and that she has to support Clinton and Biden. Hating Trump doesn’t mean you have to love Biden. People weren’t excited about Clinton and Biden. A lot of people voted for Biden only because they hate Trump. He didn’t bring anybody to the polls. It was more about not wanting Trump.
That’s just not true. Many people were excited about Biden, and spoke about it before he was chosen as the candidate. Anyone who actually pays attention to politics and is a liberal would be excited about the first senator to propose climate legislation decades ago, and the man behind the Violence Against Women Act, not to mention his platform and what he’s achieved so far, which is nothing less than FDR level change for the better.
Has he been stopped by the senate? Yes. Is he Obama? No. He’s not charismatic like Obama or exciting in that way. But he’s always been a good decent person who actually cares and knows how to get stuff done, and that is rare.
Louise has a fair point. If you weren’t someone who has followed politics closely but came out to vote in the last election, Louise is correct that the majority of votes were against Trump, not necessarily ‘for’ Biden. Biden is an accomplished politician but he doesn’t energize or excite people in the same way that Obama did.
If you were coming from a place where you previously did follow politics, then yes, you might have been more interested in voting for Biden specifically, instead of just “whoever is running against Trump”
@oswyln, that narrative was the right and some medias take on things, they were very surprised at the people who showed up (in record numbers) to vote for Biden.
Yes, some people were voting against Trump, but Biden had a lot of core support within his own party, which the media still refuses to acknowledge. That is how he won the primary against all punditry prediction.
I also didn’t read this as trying to “both sides” it. It makes me wonder if she is a leftist.
Democrats never had the votes to codify Roe.
People need to stop spreading this easily debunked misinformation.
Obama had a super majority for 72 working days and that Democratic super majority included people like Blanche Lincoln, Ben Nelson and other “Pro-Life” Democrats.
The way to protect Roe was for people to vote for pro-choice Democrats for POTUS and Senate.
The only person who talked about this in 2016 was Clinton. I like Bernie and I agree with him more on economic issues than Hillary but the truth is his campaign staff and he himself de-emphasized abortion (and guns) and played up economic issues. So it’s a total lie to claim progressives of that ilk were warning us about the risk of Roe being overturned.
I can’t recommend “The Cult of Trump” by Steve Hassan enough for anyone that has MAGA hat family. Hassan was actually in a cult (the Moonies) and is now a psychologist that specializes in influence and indoctrination. It’s a great read for all of us because we’re all being influenced by vested interests via social media whether we realize it or not. How it affects depends on so many factors, but emotional vulnerability is a huge risk factor.
Jennifer is definitely right they they’re not getting the same information, and much of what they’re getting is fear based. Heightened responses to fear and stress inhibit critical thinking, and combine emotional vulnerability, and someone is ripe for indoctrination. It’s a bit like MLMs, they offer a sense of community, a clear purpose, social validation (in a way) but you have to check your critical thinking at the door.
Respectfully, JL has the right to her opinion on Biden. I wish my fricking Republican relatives sounded and spoke like her because that would mean they either would not be voting or they would be voting Democrat instead. I don’t see anything here that indicates that JL will vote against Dems because everything she wants politically is more likely backed by a Democrat than a Republican. So my response to her is more like, “Sorry you feel that way, go vote.”
But she’s not wrong? The two-party-system is a massive problem in American politics. People have two choices and that’s not good. Both parties have backed themselves into corners because on certain issues, you cannot win an election unless you toe the party line. Less so for Democrats but still. And there seem to be more single-issue-voters in the US than any other Western countries so unless you’re against abortion, for example, you better not even try to run as a Republican.
And can we please remember than MANY Dem voters didn’t love Hillary? She would have obviously made a good President and shoudn’t even compared to the would-be dictator that ended up winning. But as a politician, she’s now being viewed through rose-colored glasses.
I think Biden is doing a good job but it’s not wrong to always expect more from your leaders.
I like how you thoughtfully worded this @Emmi.
Thanks for the nuanced take on this @Emmi
Idk…I live in Canada with a parliamentary system and 4 major parties but it *always* boils down to the same two anyway, with the left constantly fractured by “strategic voting”. Add in the Trump cancer that’s infected our politics and you’ve got yourself a stew.
Well, if the grassroot organization were more concerned about establishing another party instead of woe is me white people and choosing to be chaos agents instead, there would be another party.
But since y’all white people think Black people shouldn’t have a vote and blame us for voting with common sense and survival instincts….
I’m not American, I’m German. We have a parliamentary system which isn’t perfect by any means but it allows for the formation of new parties in a relatively short time – for better or worse. There were about 40 parties on my ballot during last year’s elections. So I don’t really have a response to your point about blaming Black people.
I must say that I share her disappointment with some Democrats and their anemic response. Lest we forget, Nancy Pelosi recited a poem, and so many Democrats can’t even say the word “abortion.” Many in power treated all of this as a fundraising opportunity. My inbox was full within hours of Roe being overturned.
I’m not absolving Republicans or the SC for their frankly monstrous party and platform that have and will continue to cause death, destruction, and suffering. And I’m not forgetting the Democrats who have been fighting the good fight for years and are not afraid to take a stand.
So you want a dictatorship in this country then?
Some of yall out here think government is a tv show and it shows.
@Tiffany, I am a Democrat who worked in politics for many years. I do not think government is a tv show, because I actually worked in it and have multiple degrees in political science. I also do not want a dictatorship. At the same time, people are allowed to be disappointed in their own party and want more from them.
@Tiffany: This is a bit of a reach, and it shows.
I did not understand her comments to be at all “both sides”-ing. I agree that she could have been more forceful in her condemnation of Donald Trump, but there are those of us who think Republicans are fascists and still don’t want the center politics of Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton. I voted for both Clinton and Biden–not because I believed in their visions for the country but because they were literally the only not crazy option. The two-party system is absolutely a failure at this point–if one party is just espousing fascism, that only leaves one viable option. I’d love to see the US move to a multi-party system that could actually make room for real center-left politics.
You seriously wrote that Biden and Clinton were not center left?
Seriously?
In the context of Western Democracies around the world? Biden and Clinton are absolutely centerists who occasionally support more center-left policies.
She can afford to tow that rich white people line that Adam McKay does of botherism. Others cannot. I cannot. Granted this interview was done before the PACT Act bill, the American Recovery Act, the charges from the AG Garland’s office regarding the Breonna Taylor murder and Trump search warrant. But if you don’t see the difference that’s on you. She wants to be political fine, we do not need another f*cking Susan Sarandon.
Change takes time and also hard work. AGAIN. If citizens voted for the legislative body we needed during PBO’s second term we would have a VERY different Supreme Court Justice, senate and congress. But they didn’t until calamity happened. And of course not a WORD about voter rights being gutted because she doesn’t have to wait in line for hours to vote. She isn’t a black person. It’s only when Roe v. Wade is struck down that folks (white women) riot.
I mean, I wasn’t “fully in Hillary’s corner” either in the sense that I did not think she was the right choice to be our nominee. She had a lot of baggage, most of which was not her fault, but it was still going to be a problem in the general election. She didn’t run a great campaign. She was practically selected by the Super Delegates and big donors before the primaries even began, which also didn’t sit well with me or a lot of other voters.
Does that mean I didn’t vote for her or think she would have made a very good POTUS? Of course not. I also like and respect Biden and think he’s doing a good job. But yes, I wish he had a more immediate and visceral reaction to the Dobbs decision, which was a such a massive gut punch no matter that a lot of saw it coming.
I think she is just acknowledging how a lot of people, especially young people, feel about politics. They are frustrated by what our choices are, by how things get done so slowly, or in piecemeal ways, or not at all. She is saying that no matter your frustration, you HAVE to vote. She’s empathizing but also saying “No Excuses.”
I don’t have a problem with it. I always vote, I donate and block walk, I talk politics openly. I hate it when people say “I don’t talk politics” or “it’s not my thing.” But it’s OK to say you’re not crazy about a candidate, or to say people in office should be doing more. That’s not burying your head in the sand.
In Canada, we have 4 major federal political parties.
Liberals= Democrats
Conservatives = Republicans
NDP= Bernie Sanders
Bloc Québécois= no US counterpart (bloc represents Quebec interests only)
Last election Trudeau did not win a majority, & was forced into a coalition with the NDP. This is exciting & excellent for Canada, because the NDP actually want to help people & invest in them (because of the coalition we have pharmacare, needs based but it’s a start, among other things). It was part of the coalition deal.
One party shouldn’t have a majority & free reign at any point: ford is destroying Ontario at an alarming rate & he actually gained seats our last provincial election.
So the US 2 party system isn’t great, leaves too many people disaffected & nothing gets done. Plus honestly, you guys have way too many elections & people coming & going from congress & the senate.
So the 2 party system is a function of the electoral college basically. We have to undo that to undo the 2 party system. We’ve seen what’s happened in past years when there is an even somewhat competitive 3rd party candidate.
ETA also I agree we have too many elections bc I personally think the House terms should be set to 4 years, rather than the 2 they are now. But for the senate, there are elections every two years but not every senator is up for re-election, their term of office is 6 years.
I attended a presentation a few months ago by a Canadian education policy expert who lives and works in the US. He says that the Democrats are the equivalent of the moderate wing of the Conservative Party of Canada, which shows how far right US politics have skewed.
Did anyone see her Q&A video from Vogue?
Interviewer: “What’s the weirdest thing you’ve read about yourself?”
Jlaw : “That I screwed Harvey Weinstein. ”
That’s was really something 👀 Too bad she was wearing sunglasses while answering that.
I dunno, she sounds very young to me. Like I get that people should and do expect more from politicians. But in the overall context, she sounds young. Like even when people talk about Hillary’s “baggage” or whatever – most of that baggage comes from the Republican party. The Republicans spent decades smearing Hillary Clinton and that paid off for them in 2016.
And yeah, she is sort of both-sidesing it. She’s saying well, Hillary wasn’t that great, but Trump was mayonnaise, and Biden’s toothless.
This makes the most sense. I see that a lot from people who just showed up to politics recently and also people who aren’t aware that the “criticisms” are pushed in massive bot propaganda efforts especially prior to an election like we are currently.
To call Biden toothless is hysterical given his historical accomplishments – but upthread someone pointed out this might have been done before a lot of those happened. Certainly we (pro democracy types) were all frustrated months ago.
Cy’s given name was Edwin.
Yeah, she and Cooke really aren’t the brightest bulbs out there.
She looks pretty and as others have noted, different. I really don’t care for Cy as a full name, it feels rather incomplete.
She’s another Matthew McConaughey. Talking out of their southern mouths trying to, “Gosh-Darn,” everyone into getting along as if they’re controlling the leashes here. They have the answers. Hell, half the global think tanks can’t agree how to move forward, but y’all listen up. McConaughey and Lawrence have our backs. 🙄
I don’t think she said anything wrong though the “Jar of mayonnaise” was dumb. There are a lot of people out there, especially younger people, that hate Trump and the Dobbs decision, are disappointed with many Democrat leaders, but will vote Democrat. I’ve voted Democrat since I turned 18 but they drive me crazy with their candidates and anemic messaging. Biden has gotten more forceful in the past couple weeks, which is much appreciated. She went out in a national magazine and called out her family: I don’t think she’s voting Republican like some said.
You know what, I’ll take what I can get at this point. Say you support abortion and that you can’t get over loved ones voting republican. I like it. Thank you Jennifer Lawrence.
Presumably, this interview was done before Biden managed to get a lot of recent wins, so she was hardly alone in feeling like the Democratic party wasn’t taking the threat serious. While I’m glad to see Biden more aggressively call out the danger of MAGA, there are still plenty of things the conservative Democrats in Congress are holding back on that could do America a lot of good. In all reality, we have one hard right party and one party that is slightly center right. Anybody more leftist than that is probably feeling unrepresented.
Like, don’t me wrong, I’m not foolish enough to waste my vote, but I definitely won’t forget that they refused to move on abortion legislatively precisely because it would help them in abortions. If we take the midterms, it’s because a lot of women were the sacrificial lambs to make it happen. Maybe some of them needed that wake up call, but Christ. What a cost.
In the end, I think this interview probably did more good than anything? I think it’s important for young people who are struggling with similar family divides to hear people talk about having to make an active choice to distance themselves from the toxicity. I’ve had to cut off family that were once quite close post-Trump. More women should also be open about things like abortions and miscarriages. She’s wealthy and always going to be removed from a lot of the political impact, but if people like her are willing to discuss it more openly, it’ll start getting more normalized. Media has failed us repeatedly otherwise.
I agree. I actually think it’s important for people to say they vote and support Democrats even if they’re not always happy with the party. Some people expect perfection and refuse to vote if they don’t get it — it’s important to talk about why you do vote the way you do, and that there are still things that you wish are better and you don’t worship a certain party. I will always vote Democrat and have been generally happy with Biden lately, but as a high-risk individual I’ll never forget how hard this administration has worked to basically erase the pandemic and move on. That’s made my life even harder than it already is, and I’m allowed to feel disappointed in that as a Democrat.
What she said is “a *dangerous, dangerous* jar of mayonnaise,” which seems a fairly apt description—greasy, bad for your health, appealing & readily available to far too many. I think in the main her interview does more good than harm and her evolution on the issues directly mirrors a lot of Americans’ experience of being raised by a conservative family in a red state. Her commentary on Roe and children’s death by gun violence is the real take away influence here I think for the kind of lower information women voters who get their information from celebrities. She’s not going to pass my personal purity test, sure, but she clearly connected the dots for a certain kind of voter.
This is a generous take, but I also very much agree. Her growth parallels what I’ve seen from close Texan friends where, initially, only Trumpism was the “wedge” issue between them and their parents, but it’s as if the scales fell from their eyes and they quickly started noticing OTHER social/societal issues where, y’know, maybe they were wrong before! As you said, she has connected the dots for a certain kind of person with a certain cultural upbringing and, to use your words, in the main, it’s good.
Opinion only here: I take issue with “forgiving” someone for their political beliefs, as she is doing with her father. While I’m firmly in the anti-MAGA camp, I would not want anyone to “forgive” my beliefs. They are a lifelong collection of life experience and research. Anyone is free to respectfully disagree with me if I’m asked to engage with someone of different beliefs. Again, this is just my opinion.
Do you vote in local elections, inform yourself on bond issues, candidates for judges, county, sheriff, state legislature, do you who know who are your state legislators? Do you vote in the primaries, midterms, US Congressional representatives and senators, governors? Do you? Anyone?
Yep. I also work the polls, on occasion.
Yes. Every election since I turned 18. And I attend town halls or other venues where my reps are speaking. Also write to reps occasionally about current events, pending legislation or situations I think need legislative solutions.
I like the wallpaper. That’s all I got.
I don’t really take issue with any of her viewpoints, but this is an instance where I get why people don’t like listening to actors talk about politics.
She’s one of those peole I prefer watching as an entertainer/actress, but I don’t know if I enjoy listening to her speak even though I don’t disagree in a hard way with anything she has to say. Go figure. I think I’ve surprised myself.
Nothing she said is really wrong but she’s not that articulate so I found her not very inspiring to listen to. Maybe that’s my takeaway.
I come from a family of mixed political beliefs, and as a lifelong Democrat, the idea of not voting scares me. Everyone in my family votes, and that means that the scary side is going to turn out no matter what. There is still time to register to vote, so if you haven’t gotten around to it yet, please do so!
JL comes from a Republican background and has switched her affiliation. That is actually major! I have spoken to my Republican family members since 2016, and I can’t get through to them at all, so I completely understand her frustration.
I live abroad (I am an American and I’m an immigrant). The Democratic candidate I need to vote for in the US is pro limiting immigration, strong boarders, and supporting the police. Ugh! However, this candidate also is pro gun control, pro choice, wants to support health care, the environment and education. The other side is pro Trumpian politics. I see it as my civic duty to stop the US from turning into a dictatorship, but I don’t love who I’m going to vote for.
Third parties are not why Trump won. My family used to be split about 75% Dem, 25% Rep. After 2016, this horrifyingly became about 50-50. About 3-4 times more Dem turned to f-ing Trump than a third party. I cannot reach the members of my family to “turn them back.” Initially this coincided with health or economic issues for most of these family members. They now get most of their news via Facebook or the internet (Fox is too leftist and they don’t trust it). This is a huge issue, because what they trust is totally different.
Democrats are less homogenous than Trump followers (and most Republicans). It’s normal that different people think differently— we’re more likely to be different skin colors, genders, from different places. However, instead of judging each other for our beliefs, keep in mind that the other side does this a lot less and they vote. Somebody who reluctantly votes Dem is still voting Dem and hopefully saving us from an abortion clinic shutting, a school shooting, a fascist judge.