I want you to look at the image that accompanies this article closely. Look at all the fonts, the images, how all the letters are packed around each other. Do you notice something they all have in common? They’re all news oriented. Main stream news. Established outlets for your news. Can you show me where the Ancestry image and logo is? Look it over, twice if you need to. Do you see it anywhere? No? Here’s why.
I have a whole list of new articles coming that are fascinating, interesting, intriguing, in addition to a couple books that will be out in this Summer and Fall. But there is an issue that I won’t tolerate anymore. People who are mixing their own political bias with genealogy are creating a poison concoction for the rest of the community. I might be a little late in saying this, but I am certainly no less important when throwing in my two-bucks worth.
Twitter is a real problem when it comes to genealogy and politics. The latter is more prevalent across the network because everyone loves to share their opinion. That’s fine. Do you know what isn’t fine? It’s when you have a gene-centric Twitter account and you’re busy peddling political views in the form of retweets. I have 3 words for you.
I. Don’t. Care.
Oh, I do care. A lot actually. I listen to the news daily. Sometimes all day. I’m also a Trump supporter and have been since he first announced his candidacy for one of the highest offices in the land. I think about half of the accounts I currently follow on Twitter are political-based. And while I might be a Trump supporter, that’s a horn no one wants me to blow because I can do it very, very well, I keep my opinions OFF of anything “heritage4nsics” or otherwise, and often times even off of my own personal Facebook page.
But back to the part where I don’t care.
Specifically, I don’t care to see your political bias being peddled and pushed on Twitter when your account is for the purpose of genealogy. Like mine is. My whole purpose for carrying the @heritage4nsics handle is to connect with others of the genealogical community while building a brand awareness. If you’re reading this and you’ve been a long-time follower of my Facebook page, then you know that not only do I keep politics off my page, but I’ve blocked people who refused to take a hint when I told them to stop.
This is February 2017. The new president has been in office for a month. The election was over more than 3 months ago. If you can’t accept, by now, that Mr. Donald J. Trump is your president, if you are an American, you are more than welcome to go somewhere else if you truly believe it will be better there. If you’re not an American, then stop.
Don’t you have real-life friends to talk that over with?
During the Fall of 2016, leading up the election, my entire Twitter feed was inundated with anti-Trump, #NeverTrump, and “I’m with Her” tweets that I finally got sick of it and unfollowed every account. A very heavy handed, but absolute move. I wasn’t putting up with it anymore. I wasn’t going to let myself be subjected to a ridicule I didn’t support and wasn’t even remotely related to the very purpose of my account.
I don’t care if you hate President Trump. I don’t care if you love President Trump. I don’t care about your bias for right-wing, left-wing, no-wing, or broken-wing points. What I do care about is growing genealogy as a hobby and interest. If you can’t keep your politics to yourself, then get a second Twitter account and spare the rest of us.
“Oh, but you can’t tell me what I can Tweet or not! It’s my account!” You’re right. You’re absolutely right. I also don’t have to follow you, like you, retweet anything you post or retweet, or even see you in my timeline or on any of my lists. You know why? Because while you may have the “right” (a purely subjective term) to tweet whatever you want, I also have the right to not pay you any attention. In fact, I even made a private list on Twitter of who to not follow for anyone that’s posted anything of a political bias in the last 3 months.
That being said, I have since started following accounts on Twitter, but I audit their stream first to make sure its something I want to see more of and the frequency of their postings.
That’s my solution to this problem. I think everyone should do that.
You don’t bring your personal drama to work. You leave it at the punch-clock and can pick it up on your way out the door when you go back home. It’s the same thing in believing its okay to inject your politics into the genealogy community. You don’t mix the two, and, again, if you can’t help yourself, then get a second Twitter account.
Class dismissed.
