Women leaving the GOP face losing community and church — even family

Melanie Barton-Gauss, a retired teacher from Florida, traveled to the City of Brotherly Love just weeks before the presidential election to spread her message of political conversion. “After Jan. 6, I did what in my family is considered unthinkable: I left the Republican Party and joined the Democrat[ic] Party. And I left the church.”

Barton-Gauss is part of a bus tour across the key battleground state hosted by Republican Voters Against Trump (RVAT). The group teamed up with The Bulwark, a political outlet founded by Never Trump Republicans, for a series of podcast tapings and other events highlighting Republicans and former Republicans supporting Vice President Kamala Harris. Targeting lifelong members of the GOP who harbor doubts about another Donald Trump term is a central strategy of the Harris campaign. RVAT’s organizers believe there are just enough of these right-leaning voters to push dead-heat swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin over the top for Democrats.

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    • solsangraalEnglish
      261·
      1 month ago

      might be the only possible way to get cultists out of the cult is to give them another cult to join. not ideal, but if trump steals the white house again, it’s all over

      • Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world
        18·
        1 month ago

        That may be how a lot of people manage addictions. However, when it comes to ideology, leaving one community tends to ripple through a person’s life in a way that completely up-ends it. To leave is to lose everything and everyone that’s dear to you. The thing is, once that door is opened and everything’s already been lost, it becomes easier to question all the other things you were told to believe. I’ve spent a lot of time in areligious spaces (in-person as well as online) and it’s not unusual for former cult members to become full-blown skeptics. The trauma of what they endured provides a strong motivation to avoid becoming duped again in the future.

        From the posted article:

        Schneider described how she’d been a lifelong Republican and devout evangelical Christian her entire adult life. In 2018, however, “I had an issue with my church.” Schneider was an extremely active volunteer but wanted more of a leadership role. But “because I had a vagina,” she said, church leadership told her that was not possible. That sent Schneider on a journey of exploring new ideas, including voting for President Joe Biden in 2020.

        This is a familiar story, and it gives me hope. It also reminds me to look up cult survivor groups to join, because these people need support now more than ever.

      • IcePee@lemmy.beru.co
        716·
        1 month ago

        “Again”? While Hilary won the popular vote, Trump won the college. Or are you referring to electoral interference by other state actors? While I don’t deny that it happened, I’m not convinced that had a material impact over, say Hillary’s unlikability with the electorate, coupled with her dreadful campaign messages, and pissing off likely voters with her high jinx during the primary. Also, she was a target rich environment for oppo research. The whole having a private and public position had real cut through.