Can We Still Disagree and Get Along?

I want to believe we can but I may be clinging to a reality that is gone

Has the time for this come and gone?

I posted the above image on my Facebook wall in an effort to show that I don’t have an ideological litmus test for my friends. I have always prided myself on having friends along the political spectrum. I had dozens of responses. Some people agreed but the majority responded that what the disagreement is about determines whether the friendship can be maintained. Some people responded with this quote:

“We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.”

That quote is usually attributed to James Baldwin but it was actually penned by Robert Jones Jr., who tweeted it in 2015 under the moniker, @sonofBaldwin. Regardless of who penned it, I agree with the sentiment.

My problem is that I grew up in a different era. My childhood was spent in very red Suffolk County, New York. I think the area was at least three to one Republican. All of my family are Democrats and I started volunteering for political campaigns when I was eight years old. One could argue that my parents didn’t like me much because they let me go door-to-door campaigning at such a young age.