Since I started working in the political world, I’ve been asked one question over and over, “What do your friends think about your political leanings?”
The truth is that for the most part I don’t usually discuss politics with my close friends. We talk about “Real Housewives of New York” and wedding planning and celebrity breakups and work stress and podcast recommendations and eyebrow pencils and diets and desserts.
Maintaining my few close friendships trumps (no pun intended) my temptation to talk about Biden’s mental decline or #FillingTheSeat.
But I do understand why the question comes up time and again. Like most movie stars, professional athletes and famous musicians — millennials do tend to lean left. Need proof? Check out social media.
Instagram has changed drastically over the last few years. Formerly used as an app to post pictures of puppies and iced coffee, the “gram” is now heavily focused on politics.
Some people’s posts are more subtle than others. While one of my followers implores people to vote “like their life depends on it,” another just cuts to the chase and posts, “A vote for Trump is a vote for racism.”
Needless to say, when I come across someone who dares share an opinion that is pro-Trump on a public platform, I remember it.
So I decided to reach out to a few of these rare vocally conservative Millennials.
The first person I talked to was … let’s call her “Yvonne.”
Yvonne is a 27-year-old woman from Boston who posts on Twitter about everything from Joe Biden’s teleprompter disasters to the dangers of socialism.
Maybe she could shed some light on the lack of conservative voices on social media, I thought, so I typed in her username on Twitter to message her — but nothing came up. I found her on Instagram and reached out that way.
“Did you delete your Twitter account??” I asked.
She replied, “Yeah. I’m scared to get into trouble or that people will hate me.”
Great.
This column was supposed to be about fearless young republicans — and my first example had retreated.
But I was still intrigued.
What did she mean by “getting into trouble”? Was she scared about work?
She immediately responded, “Work, losing friends, guys thinking I’m crazy, etc.”
Yvonne informed me that she would most likely reactivate her account, but that she was taking a break. Her hiatus was brief — she is back (and better than ever) on Twitter.
Next, I reached out to a college acquaintance who occasionally posts his dislike for far-left Democratic policies. We will call him “Danny,” and he currently lives in San Francisco where he works in finance.
He did not mince words, writing, “I will be the first to tell you — Donald Trump certainly has his flaws. By no means am I a staunch ’Trump guy’. But as a conservative, I can’t stand the thought of the Democrats running this country — especially after living through what they have done to a beautiful city like San Francisco.”
Later, I asked the House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s constituent if he ever feared any repercussions for sharing his views.
“Yes definitely; I’ve toned it down a little bit for that reason. I think ultimately corporate culture will get so toxic that overly ‘progressive’ companies will experience a brain drain.”
So their answers were similar — two conservative people, confident in their viewpoints, but cautious of the “tolerant” powers that be.
The expression goes that the loudest voice in the room isn’t always the right one. Well, I can assure you that the loudest voices on social media are most certainly the left ones. But that doesn’t mean the opposing voices aren’t speaking up — they just have to be a bit more careful than their friends.
Yvonne told me she received several private replies to her latest post of a Trumptilla boat parade. They were all positive.
Danny acknowledged, “The more I post, the more I have both subtle and overt ‘thumbs-up’ from people whom I’ve never discussed politics with.”
Maybe there is a silent majority — and maybe there are even a few silent Millennials.
