A few days ago, Ellen DeGeneres grabbed the attention of the social media world.
These four words could change the world:
“Be kind to everyone.”
Sunday, Oct. 6, Ellen DeGeneres attended a Dallas Cowboys game with George W. Bush.
This may not seem like a big deal, unless you’re Ellen and George. As a former Republican president of the United States, George represents conservative America.
Ellen represents the liberal side of the political landscape. She is the popular host of The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Ellen and George have contrasting values, and their political views represent two different sides of the aisle.
Ellen received an invitation to attend the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers game with her wife, Portia de Rossi. Ellen posted a self-made video. In the video, she revealed that she was sitting in the Dallas Cowboys suite with the team’s owner Jerry Jones and his wife, along with President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush.
Let the fun begin.
Twitter lit up.
Good Housekeeping reports: Several celebrities and public figures voiced their opinions about the issue, and the perspectives were mixed.
Actress Reese Witherspoon voiced her support for DeGeneres in a since-deleted tweet, thanking DeGeneres for her “important reminder.”
Kristen Bell, star of NBC’s The Good Place, shared a side-by-side photo of DeGeneres and Bush, 73, with the caption: “She’s my [queen]”
Both posts drew largely negative responses from commenters, some calling for the posts to be deleted, saying that the actresses were “privileged” and calling Bush harmful to the Middle East and the LGBTQ community.
Meanwhile, Bell’s husband, Dax Shepard, responded to Ellen’s tweet with “PREACH!”
Country singers Blake Shelton, John Rich and Kelsea Ballerini also voiced their support.
The video spawned both vitriol and praise. The praise was sporadic, and the vitriol was over the top.
Criticizers attacked both Ellen and George.
The Hollywood Reporter posted: Speaking about the backlash, DeGeneres said that “people were upset: ‘Why is a gay Hollywood liberal sitting next to a conservative president?’ A lot of people were mad.”
President Bush Hammered on Twitter
“Sorry, until George W. Bush is brought to justice for the crimes of the Iraq War, (including American-lead torture, Iraqi deaths & displacement, and the deep scars — emotional & otherwise — inflicted on our military that served his folly), we can’t even begin to talk about kindness.”
Ellen responded: “The backlash for sitting with George W. Bush is out of bounds.”
Shamefully, we live in times where kindness is rejected.
Ellen Goes on the Record
“I’m friends with George. In fact, I’m friends with a lot of people who don’t share the same beliefs that I have,” she said. “We’re all different, and I think that we’ve forgotten that that’s OK that we’re all different. Just because I don’t agree with someone on everything doesn’t mean that I’m not going to be friends with them. When I say, ‘Be kind to one another,’ I don’t mean only the people who think the same way you do. I mean, be kind to everyone.”
Wow! Standing ovation, please.
Can we recall the days where disagreement was not disapproval? Not so long ago, a difference of opinion was an opportunity to expand learning.
And people with opposing political views were close friends. Not today.
Ellen’s message is spot-on. What would our world resemble if we were kind? What if everyone were kind to everybody? That will never happen. What if what was tweeted could happen? {eoa}
Thomas McDaniels is a pastor/writer and the guy behind thomasmcdaniels.com. He has written for ChurchLeaders.com and currently is a contributing writer for Fox News. He is also the Founder of LifeBridge.tv and the Longview Dream Center in Longview, Texas. Thomas can be found on social media on Instagram and Twitter. Find additional inspiring articles by visiting his website.
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