Fear of Politics

It’s that time of year in the U.S., a time that so many in our nation dread, yet is also so important: election season.

It’s a time that seems to divide so many of us, but I want to think about something that unifies us all. Our system is built so that we all have a voice, and I believe that if you don’t use it by voting, you are failing a civic duty.

With that in mind, I want to tell you a story:

When I first started my career, I worked in influencer marketing managing a roster of influencers. I was fortunate to work with some brilliant talent, who were all women of color (i.e. vulnerable to more hate than other influencers) and had strong political opinions. But, they were unanimously scared to share them.

I can understand that fear: people online can be harsh when they can hide behind computer screens. They spew venom easily and readily, and we all have a strong impulse to protect ourselves.

They were all in the beauty and fashion space and didn’t feel they had a right to share their feelings; that wasn’t what people were “there for.” Again, I could understand what they were saying, but in the end, followers are there not necessarily for the best advice (although that’s often what they got), but because the influencers are who they are. People follow them because they like them.

That was the key reason I knew they needed to speak up somehow. And so I set about finding a solution: how could they talk about politics without alienating followers or attracting hate?

The answer came in the form of an email from someone asking if we had any talent interested in joining a bi-partisan get-out-the-vote campaign.

Eureka! We had multiple influencers who ended up joining the campaign, all of them successfully registering new voters and reminding hundreds of thousands of others about their civic responsibilities.

This brings me back to now, when again we are all facing a tough couple of months ahead. We will likely see division and have to make some decisions about where we draw the line in the sand of what we will and won’t stand for.

So I encourage you during this time to think about the fact that you, too, have a voice, and now is the time to use it. It may not be about saying something divisive, but instead think about unifying factors that affect all of us, just like this election does. Size doesn’t matter—making a difference for even one person does.

Lesson Learned: We all have a voice online, regardless of size. You are better off using it and taking the leap than living in fear and inaction.