It’s no secret on Instagram which way we voted.
We voted for:
- The end of a power hungry leader who cannot condemn white supremacy
- A new administration focused on unity, truth, facts and science
- The first woman AND woman of color vice president (finally)
- Changes towards the end of systemic racism
- The protection of women’s, LGBTQ+, and POC rights
- The longevity of Mother Earth
- Kindness and respect for all
- Much more…
To me this election was not about political parties.
It was about human decency, unity, women’s rights (and those of every marginalized person), condemning white supremacy, the environment, international respect, science, and compassion.
And it was about character. Character is everything.
I will always stand up for what I believe in rather than hide in neutrality to maintain follower counts.
I hope you’ll stick around regardless of whether or not you share the same beliefs, but if you decide to leave over this, that’s alright with me.
We made a Biden + Harris cake to celebrate change
And clinked glasses of bubbly in honor of the election results.
Rewinding back…..to Saturday Soccer
Shortly after the news broke on Saturday, my parents were on their way here. I took Mazen to his soccer game and heard cars honking and people cheering in the streets!
Mazen played goalie for the first time!
Back at home, we relaxed for a while before heading out to a super early dinner out.
Since it opened, we had been eager to take my parents to the Wool Factory!
We wore masks to our table and ate outside.
Mazen was too cool for school
I had to get the 1/4 chicken platter again for those yummy sauces and homemade tortillas! Super good. Plus a beer.
And back at home, we shared the cake!
We watched Madam Vice President give her speech. I think it was the best speech of all time! She is so poised, and every word was perfectly selected. I definitely felt all the chills for all the women of the past and the future.
Sunday morning soccer fuel
A cinnamon raisin English muffin with butter and jam
I was thankful to have Grammie and Pea to play with the kids while I headed out for a double header! First stop was women’s league at noon. I wore my Survivor buff to protect my forehead from the sun!
I had an hour break at home to eat a banana and some cheesy potatoes before heading out to our co-ed game in the afternoon. My dad came to watch and took some pics!!
Back at home, we quickly made a Blue Apron shrimp orzo that was delicious on our porch!
I hope you had a great weekend, too!
Amy says
It’s so important that we don’t just unfollow people who disagree with us politically! I definitely fall on the more conservative side than you in regards to most political things (though I’m *so* happy to say goodbye to Trump), but I’ve followed you for years (since you were in RD school) and have no plans to stop. I really encourage anyone who is thinking about unfollowing over this post to stop and think about if they want to put themselves in a bubble of only people who believe exactly like them. We all need to be willing to listen and engage with people who believe differently than us. ?
Kath Younger says
Thanks Amy – I agree!
K~ says
Good for you Kath. What an exhausting year, so much chaos, drama and lies. For us, he failed to portect the country , he couldn;t even protect himself and all your reasons as well. I read this morning, he is going to start his rallies up again ?! For the lov of Pete, go away and leave us alone to heal and unite ??
Christina says
Cheers to bringing some humanity back, and I agree, Kamala’s speech was amazing!
Whitney says
“It was about human decency, unity, women’s rights (and those of every marginalized person), condemning white supremacy, the environment, international respect, science, and compassion.
And it was about character. Character is everything.”
YES-100%!! Thank you for always being authentic and unafraid!
Beth says
YES! This is the perfect summary of what this election was to me too. I am glad you are being authentic about your views, and optimistic about change.
Angie says
We celebrated with cake, balloons, and champagne too on Saturday! This is what my aunt helped me write to explain how I feel to Trump supporting family members: Did you ever hear the story about the little English girl who had been sent to the country during the blitz. Her mother went and fetched her after the war was over. When they emerged from the underground the child looked around and said, “mommy I thought you said we won.”You cannot win a flood, you cannot win an earthquake. There is a certain amount of relief the Biden won but there is too much grief about what has happened to our democracy, our country on the world stage. I can’t jump up and down because we won because the real person who won in this whole thing was Vladimir Putin. We are just where he wants us: at each other‘s throat‘s. This dissension was delivered to him on a silver platter. The silver platter was carried by a man who has never ever criticized Putin, is happy for him to mess in our elections, meets with him and has phone conversations that he allows no one to record and dances with other totalitarians. Trump deliberately gutted all our departments And deliberately went out and found the most incompetent people to run them. They have fleeced us for millions, They are so incompetent they took away peoples children with not of thought about how to reunite them. The administration actually said they didn’t think anyone would care. I paid for that, that blood is on my hands. Now my life and my children’s lives has been totally up ended by a pandemic the man didn’t want to mess with it. Theses are just the tip of the iceberg. I see no cause for glee or celebration here, I have gratitude that now we can start to clean up the mess and I pray for courage to be able to do that.
Kath Younger says
Agree with all of this.
LB says
Well said. Thank you for speaking up and sharing this. Preach!
Pat says
Amen
Pat says
Amen!
Kelly Griffith says
All of the kudos to you for standing by your beliefs and not letting the fear of any backlash deter you from sharing them, and I echo all of your statements completely!
Betsy A Fry says
Thank you Kath for sharing your voice so loudly. I applaud you and hope that our country is headed towards healing and unity.
Andrea says
YAY!! A huge sigh of relief over here in Canada when the election results came out.. thanks for sharing your opinion, not easy to do in today’s internet climate. And YES to the first woman VP, and person of colour …. she is such a boss! Feeling so much hope!
Denise says
Andrea, I was thrilled (and quite teary) when I saw the world celebrating with us! Thank you all from grateful Americans!
Molly says
YES I am so proud of you for sharing your views. It must be really hard as a blogger. Appreciate it SO SO SO MUCH.
Jill D says
Good for you Kath!
Mandy says
I was driving and listening to CNN when I heard the news. Tears of RELIEF! Later when I got home, I was watching more CNN (wow…so much CNN this week) and I cried again, this time for joy for Kamala. Then I cried for Joe. The sun was out all weekend in Ohio, the skies were blue…It all just felt so perfect. We celebrated with my brother and his wife with a bonfire, fun desserts, and a celebratory shot of “the good stuff (per my brother).” I want to always remember this weekend.
Before we knew the results, I asked my 13 year old if he ever feels his parents are on the wrong side of things, because we are in the a very red county in a very red state, and he hears all sorts of crazy talk all day at school. He so sweetly reminded me that over half the country thinks the same way I do. I really needed to hear that.
Kath Younger says
What your son said is so sweet!
Jackie says
Great post, Kath! Thanks for speaking up for what you believe and I couldn’t agree more.
Krista says
So well said Kath. I couldn’t agree more on all your points!
Chelsea says
Such a great weekend–impossible to not celebrate. Woo-hoo!
Carolina says
I am not american and I have shared your feelings as a country during the past 4 years and specially last week, as I’m sure many other countries have. Time for healing and make things right. Big congratulations from Europe; unity, growth and agreement is so much needed between the US and us, again. The world needs unity and compassion, as you said Kath. My very first comment after following you for long!
Kath Younger says
Thank you – and an excellent first comment!
Angela says
Well said! There was so much at stake. Breathing a sigh of relief.
Carol says
Thank you for sharing. . Now I know we have similar viewpoints. And I think we ALL want a safe, healthy world for our families. I look forward to your posts.
Carol
Stacey says
I don’t share your beliefs, but that doesn’t have anything to do with me enjoying your blog so I’m here to stay! What I do share is happiness that the election is over and we can all move forward. I do have to say though, I didn’t listen to anyone’s speech, but I would expect them both to say all the things to make everyone feel safe and at ease. That is what most acceptance speeches are; what truly matters is what comes after their speeches.
Kath Younger says
Thank you <3
Judith L Scott says
Well said Kath! You are true to yourself, which is a wonderful quality. I agree with everything you wrote, but I realize as great as Band H are, we can’t expect miracles. I see a slow rebuilding process ahead, but at least we’re heading in the right direction!
Kath Younger says
Yes, for sure. They have a big challenge ahead of them.
Kirsten says
Couldn’t agree more!
Cathy says
I totally agree with you!
Carolyn says
I’ve been reading your blog for years (since the real-time blogging days) but have never commented before. I share your beliefs and thank you for using your platform, even at the expense of followers, to stand up for what’s right (crazy that science and condemning white supremacy are partisan issues these days, but here we are!). Excited for what’s to come.
Colleen Simmons says
Completely agree on all your points!! Character is everything and Trump didn’t have character and only cared about men like him (white and rich).
Erin says
A perfect election summary. Well done, Kath!! Thank you for using your platform like this.
Ruthie says
Well said…
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Let’s bring on hope, unity, and love for all!!
Eva says
I am actually wary of content creators who won’t voice their political opinions in this day and age… Silence is dangerous, happy that you’ve spoken out.
Alan says
Hi Kath. Thank you for the bravery of this blog post (and your IG posts over months). In a field like this, where your private and public blur, and your business of clicks relies on good will of people, it takes guts to risk that, in favor of deeply held beliefs. I admire that you stood up and counted.
I say that as a person in 100% agreement of your post here, so it’s easier for me to reply happily, but I also wanted to thank you for the leadership in doing so. I hope it doesn’t hurt your business here, but the larger issue is helped by your stance (in my opinion). Beautiful family, as always.
Kath Younger says
Thanks Alan
Melissa says
On a non-political note, Mazen is looking so grown up! Wow.
Kath Younger says
Haha yes!!
Jeanie says
Glad to see you voted for the right candidate! 🙂
Elizabeth F says
Love your Biden-Harris cake! Kamala’s speech was wonderful—I cried tears of joy and relief watching it! (I also teared up a LOT watching the video of her calling Joe Biden to say that they won. Lots of happy tears this weekend! ?)
amy says
Thank you for the courage to say what you think (and I fully agree)! Some of the other bloggers I read also stated their (same) view as you, but they have tons of negative comments (pbfingers is who I am thinking of). Are your followers just way more liberal (amazing) or do you censor (I don’t care if you censor- I would too)!
Kath Younger says
I read some of Julie’s comments. I didn’t delete any yesterday (I hope they don’t flock in now). There have been a few angry unfollowers over the past few months, but I think either my readers are more liberal due to a natural weeding out or perhaps they are just more used to me sharing my beliefs.
Amy says
Thanks for replying! I am glad your followers are much more polite and civil.
LB says
We must reject the ideas that disagreement is undemocratic and that facts don’t matter. Voting is how democracies disagree. 70 million voters exercising their most precious rights as Americans disagreed with 74 million American voters, also exercising their most precious rights. But disagreement doesn’t change facts, and facts matter. Biden-Harris won the popular vote and the Electorial College. Disagree about opinions. Dissent about the best way to govern. Demand transparency. Verify the facts. But, draw the line at delegitimizing the facts because they are disliked. Our demoracy depends on it.
I applaud you for sharing your political beliefs, which I enuthastically endorse, even though many others will disagree with them and your business may suffer. I also applaud your readers who will resist the urge to stop visiting your website and Instagram because they disagree with you about who should be president/vice president. Thinking of RBG, we must learn to disagree with civility.
Kath Younger says
Totally agree – well stated!
Ella says
Kath – I’ve been reading your blog since I was an impressionable 14 year old. Now almost 22, you’re one of the very few people who I have truly cheered on and celebrated for (even though it was often quietly!) throughout the years. I was moved at your honesty about your divorce, about finding new love, about your parenting. Your writing has always made me feel like I had found a friend, even though we have never met. I am so glad to hear you loudly cheer for the end of these horrific 4 years. It means so much to me to know that the person I have sent love to from afar for so many years shares the same values as me. Big hugs to you, thank you for being on the side of kindness and decency.
Kath Younger says
Thank you Ella! This brings tears to my eyes!
Ann M Sullivan says
Thank you so much for speaking out!
Becca says
THANK YOU for posting this and not hiding away and pretending like last week was just another week, nothing special happening. THANK YOU for siding with democracy and against hate. THIS IS THE MODEL FOR HOW YOU DO IT, OTHER BLOGGERS.
Kris says
Whoa! Kath I’ve read you for probably 12 years+ and never commented. I’m Canadian but your honesty about the election was so brave and really profound. Thank you.
Danielle says
Couldn’t agree more, Kath! This is how you do it… thanks for the leadership on this very important subject! <3
Beca says
Kath. I’ve followed silently for years. MAD respect for this post, truly,
Cari says
I have been a reader since the beginning. For many years, your blog has been an inspiration in healthy living. It was an something to look forward to after the stress of everyday life. Your blog had always been an escape from the divisive politics that are so present in our lives today. Recently several of your posts have been very political. It is your right to voice your opinions, and I fully support that. But it is also my right to take my business elsewhere. Today will be my last time visiting your site. Thanks for all the inspiration over the years, best of luck in the future.