by Joe Courter
For most all of you, the horrible things the MAGA gang have been doing is overwhelming to comprehend, outrage on outrage. We have ideals and principles for the directions our society should be going, and we see things being undone before our eyes. We commiserate and discuss with our friends, but for many, especially with the holidays coming up, we may be cast into situations with our others where we are around folks who are just fine with the way things are going. It may be that they don’t think about politics or follow the news, or worse, MAGA might be thrown right in our face, because it is their norm to bring it up. It could possibly be to bait you, or you may fall into the trap of baiting them.
In a way, I am glad that I do not have much in the way of family to get together with; I chose to not have kids and I have just two older brothers. However, after 50 years in Gainesville I have met and connected with so many people that I truly feel, whether through socializing, activism, politics, or music, they are my family. And almost everyone shares the dominant ethics and values of this great Blue Dot town.
I’ve been talking to friends about it, and hearing how their familial dramas are playing out, and it has made me realize something (besides the fact that ‘most everybody has it worse than me). There are whole segments of the population who are rigidly narrow in their views, and all the “woke’’ ideas so many of us are fine with or aspire towards, are actually alien to their lives in the case of the habitually a-political, or even seen as threatening as with those for whom FOX or their preacher is their go-to news.
It is so easy to feel, if you are one of those who this administration calls “Woke” (and I check off most of their boxes), that the folks driving MAGA are an enemy coming for us, our friends, and things we value, because they actually ARE! We see it with ICE, with attacks on voting and free speech, blatant disregard for the laws of the nation, tearing down our heath care opportunities and our rights as easily as ripping down the historic East Wing of the White House. And then there you are with Uncle Fred, Aunt Helen, or your brother-in-law; what to do?
I let my emotions get away from me with my brother one time, and I regret it. He is not a political animal, does not keep up with news, and while I still hold him complicit, my frustration was not going to change him.
Perhaps the best we can do in those situations is have concrete, real-world examples supporting our position, lay them out there, and see if there can be dialog. We may need to listen to them, too, if nothing other than to understand their position, however offensive or unrelatable we may find it. And then, if nothing connects, maybe just agree to disagree and park the topic for the duration. They are who they are, as we are who we are.
If they are status quo people, their world has not changed much except in minor ways. LGBTQ rights have been a rocket ship of change in our society. Fully recognizing systemic racism and entrenched sexism in our society is pretty recent. Those things may not have found them yet.
One reason DeSantis claimed rainbow crosswalks had to go was because they could confuse self-driving cars. Likewise, rigid conservatives are confused by all this woke-ness. We need to be capable of introducing it to them. In the long run, we need allies.
Good luck to those who have to run that gauntlet over the holidays. When you come back, know we in this Blue Dot of Alachua County are here, and may we all continue to appreciate each other as we as we try to deal with this fascist coup that has rolled over us.
Hang in there, keep hope alive, stay healthy. We each get but one life, don’t let them steal your joy.