Over 400 years ago, Shakespeare set the scene for us with his legendary Romeo and Juliette that placed two opposing families at the center of a tragic love story. Today we see somewhat of a revival of contraries with the right and the left on the political and social justice spectrum.
Around 20% to 25% of U.S. families report having people who vote for different political parties living under one roof. Studies and surveys, including those by the Pew Research Center, indicate that political diversity within households is relatively common, especially in an era of increasing political polarization.
This statistic suggests that up to a quarter of the population in the U.S.A is overcoming their opposing ideologies and finding commonalities with their loved ones. Recently, Trevor Noah sat down with Simon Sinek to discuss the significance of friendship, and we have to wonder if the polarization that is increasing will cause irreparable damage to those vital connections we share.
In South Africa our politics is complex but at least it’s more varied and therefore there is likely a higher percentage of political diversity within households. Unfortunately data isn’t available to confirm this.
What are your thoughts? Do you let your political or social ideology guide your friendship and relationship choices?
