Chris Evans is a liberal/progressive guy. He’s a Democrat who supported Hillary Clinton, and he’s used his social media to vent about Donald Trump. He also got into a Twitter fight with white supremacist David Duke, which led to a lot of headlines about Captain America literally “hitting back” at Nazis. The thing is, Chris Evans is also a huge supporter of the New England Patriots and their quarterback Tom Brady. Brady is the same guy who couldn’t see past his own white-dude privilege to understand why he should not support Donald Trump. Brady and Trump are good friends, and that whole situation still disgusts me, frankly. But Chris Evans gives Brady a “pass.” Because Brady’s good at football.
Chris on Brady’s support of Trump: “Well, I tell you what. If anyone gets a pass it’s Tom Brady. We may have political disagreements. But I don’t want to encourage this landscape of if you disagree with me politically, you’re my enemy; That’s not the case. Granted, it’s an easy thing to say as a privileged white male. Because there are plenty of people oppressed and victimized and in jeopardy at this stage. It’s easy for me to say, ‘Hey, we can all get along.’ I’m just going out of my way to give Tom Brady a pass. He gave me five rings. What am I supposed to do? He gets a pass.”
Chris will continue to speak out on Twitter though: “I’m a citizen first, actor second. I know a lot times actors get grief for having their opinions shared, and people label you as ‘out of touch.’ That’s fine if you feel that way, But also it doesn’t negate what I think and feel. And I have a right to share it. More than anything else I’m a citizen of America. And I have my thoughts and opinions.”
I was prepared to drag both Chris and Tom Brady, but Chris sort of stopped me mid-tantrum by acknowledging his privilege in the midst of his defense of Brady. Incidentally, that’s something Brady would never do, nor would he even think about his privilege in this or any other kind of context. I actually have to applaud Chris Evans for the nuance with which he handles the question – he’s not being smarmy or #NotAllTrumpVoters about these people. He’s not even saying that other people should give Brady a pass. I think this is probably the exception many Bostonians have made: they want those Super Bowl victories so much, they’re willing to overlook Brady and Robert Kraft’s political alliances. They’re also willing to overlook a bunch of other terrible sh-t too.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Getty.
Look to Tom Brady for political stances – said no one ever
And I was just beginning to like him above and beyond his ass. Oh well.
Sorry, but just the ‘if anyone gets a pass, it’s tom brady’ is unnerving..winning at any cost is trump’s mantra
The thing is it doesn’t stop at Brady. For many people their priorities lie primarily with entertainment, which is why many sports franchises have rosters full of abusers and woman-beaters.
It’s very easy to slam David Duke on Twitter. It’s harder to come out against something that actually means a lot to you.
I won’t even give my mother a pass on her Trump vote so Tom Brady – f$$k you. Twice.
as Willie implied I am stunned that anyone can make $6428 in 4 weeks on the internet .
view…………. tinyurl.com/superjobsforyou
I guess this is how people justify even watching the NFL, knowing how they cover up domestic violence?
I mean, with this line of thinking, we can justify anything.
So, again, arrogant asshole. Go ahead and try to take another layer of skin off me, Chris Evans supporters. It’s amazing how someone can do so much and negate it all with a simple interview.
I dont think he has negated anything. He is just an ordinary human being with internal contradictions as we all do. He is atleast conscious and self reflective of them which is more than can be said for most human beings.
I like you Cherise.
Why “if anyone gets a pass it’s Tom Brady?!” Because he’s a football player? What a stupid comment.
No, not because Brady is a football player but because Chris is a huge Patriot fans just like some posters on here. There are Democrats from MA that didn’t support Trump but they are Patriots and Brady fans.
You don’t remember the posters on here defending Brady during deflategate? Some of them were Brady/Patriots fans.
Our friends in the Boston area are Trump-hating liberals who love the Patriots … what can you do? There was a movement for them to donate to good causes to compensate for their inconsistencies. With baseball, football fans etc. I guess the feeling is the game will go on long after these fool politicians are gone.
I’m a liberal from Massachusetts and hate Trump beyond belief. We are the most loyal and supporting sports fans no matter how are teams are doing.
Of course we’re going to defend Brady and the Pats when it comes to the Deflategate crap. It was proven to be UNTRUE!!!!
I don’t understand why he felt he needs to give Brady a “pass.” Why should football success make it all right to hold a political position or not? Does Evans want to make excuses for still supporting Brady and the Patriots? He could still like football even if he doesn’t politically agree with how Brady voted. I find it alarming that one’s accomplishments exempts them from certain standards in Chris’s mind. Either everyone gets a “pass” or no one does, and really, this is meaningless since someone else approving or disapproving of your vote means absolutely nothing politically (though, granted, it means a lot socially).
I’m not sure if I would applaud him for anything. Sport bro annoys me so much.
So instead of being POTUS, he was Governor of Massachusetts and pretty much destroyed your state, would you have the same attitude.
I was done Evans for awhile and nothing will change that now.
Do none of you have friends or family members who voted the opposite of you? Do you cut them out of your life completely or what?
.
Voted opposite? You mean stood on the same side of this administration knowing full well what harm they will do, what trump did and said in his past and during the campaign cycle?
That’s not opposite voting, that’s selfish deplorable voting, so my answer is yes, and yes.
Unfortunately some of them voted for Trump. I’m upset that they could really support such a monster, but I would never cut them out of my life. Not everyone in my life has the same opinion as me. None of them cut me out of their lives because I voted for Hillary
If she won, what do you think they might have done?
They would never have cut me out of their lives. I wasn’t the only Hillary voter in my family and most of my friends voted for her too.
Beth, I’m sorry, but that’s a false equivalence. Hillary didn’t say she wanted to kill the families of terrorists. She didn’t say she like to grab men by their penises. She didn’t call men fat slobs, say to get rid of healthcare we all need. I hate when people compare. You may disagree with Hillary’s politics, and you may have even believed the vile lies spread by O’Reilly, Limbaugh and Hannity, but she is not a vile human being the way Trump is.
False equivalence.
@sarah, what the heck are you talking about? I don’t support Trump! I’m completely against Trump and am disgusted with everything about him. I voted and 200% supported Hillary just like most of my family and friends did. You definitely misread what I said. However, I’m not going to kick my parents and a few friends out of my life for making this mistake. Having my family around is VERY important to me. I’ll alway be disappointed and upset with them for voting for him and they sure know it.
This. Besides it being politically counter productive to run around writing ALL trump voters off, its just dumb. Most of us have a relative or friend who was taken in by the populist rhetoric. People who are not very politically engaged or even very intellectual who believed that the fears of Trump racism, islamaphobia and sexism were baseless and that the system is insulated against that kind of president. My mother is from Rwanda, so both immigrant and black while my dads family is white. I have never felt unloved by them but some of them are lifelong blue collar republicans and voted Trump. They genuinely thought that I would do better in Trumps America because in their minds we were all going to economically prosper. Apparently people like Original Kay would have me disown my aunt as racist even though I have vivid memories of her wiping my snort with her bare hand while soothing me when my father died. Some people, on both sides, just cant see beyond their own rigid prescriptive narrow world. Me, I focus my hate energies on the alt right and try to address ideological differences with ordinary republicans.
Hey now, why single me out? I don’t give a shit what you do. I answered for myself.
Get your head out of your ass, it’s not a hat.
ETA: know how I can write them off? Head on over to the Spicer thread and read the first hand accounts of how people are being tormented by this administration. That’s how I can write them all off.
Yes. I very much believe it’s unfair to write off ALL Trump voters as dumb. My family and friends are many different races, gay people, disabled, rich, and poor. Lots didn’t pay real attention to the fact they were being conned. Some liked hearing about the millions of jobs he promised and seeing he was a “successful ” business man they thought he’d be able to handle everything. They’re now seeing they made the wrong choice. I’ll always love these people. I’ve known many for my entire life and it would be awful to lose them. I’ll always be disappointed they made such an obviously foolish mistake, but I won’t disown them
“Get your head out of your ass, it’s not a hat.”
Wow, you’re a real charmer.
My sister voted for Trump, I’m not cutting her out of my life. But if it comes up in conversation I’m not going to give her a break either, neither does her daughter.
I don’t cut them out. I tell them how badly they hurt and disappoint me because I know they have good hearts. Then you call out all the hypocrisy and bigotry you can.
My parents vote liberal, and hate Trump, but are very conservative in other ways.
About four months ago I started calling out my father over the misogynistic and racist shit he says as ‘jokes’. And his privilege as an educated white man.
I love him dearly, and have always been a daddy’s girl, so this was pretty hard for me, and probably not pleasant for him at all. He’s been ignorant of how much hurt he causes, how he’s contributing to a greater problem but he wants to be liberal. So it made for some severely awkward family engagements, but he has now started self monitoring and calling my mom out on things now too.
I do have family members who voted for trump, and did I cut them completely out? No. But I did distance myself drastically from them. It’s not about the policies they were actually supportive of (mainly the promises of increasing jobs), but it’s the fact that they were willing to overlook so many other hateful, discriminatory, bigoted and offensive policies and statements from so many hateful, discriminatory, bigoted and offensive people in Trump’s campaign. I wasn’t trying to punish them for their vote, they *are* free to vote for whomever they’d like. But I was so disgusted with their choice that I didn’t want to be around them any more because there was a side of them revealed to me that changed how I view them. I’ll always love them because they’re my family, but I have no desire to see them anymore. I can be civil at gatherings, but things will never be the same because for me there was a fundamental shift in my perception of them.
+1
I’m the same way as others I have maybe two relatives that voted for Trump. I haven’t cut them out of my life but I have been distant. I care about their well-being and keep in touch, but it’s so hard to understand some of their choices and beliefs.
As far as Evans goes, I’m real close to cancelling him too which is a shame because I feel he’s pretty woke as to his privilege and the negative impact of the domestic policies the current administration is shoving at us. But I don’t think you can just give anyone a blanket pass because the political climate is so openly hostile to marginalized groups. And you can’t be blind as to potential and actual harm the decisions being made by our administration.
No, fortunately, I do not have any family or close friend who voted for #orangerapist. I had a few very vague acquaintances on fb who did – they’re all blocked. Some of my friends said they were advised not to block people, but to still allow them to see another POV. But, I’m pretty much Michael Shannon on this matter. I will concede that as a Native women I’m more unlikely to have any deplorables as friends and that makes it easier for me to cut them out of my life. But, it also makes me more prone to experience the racism and the overt make my life dangerous, comment right to my face kind of world it is post-election. I don’t give any slack to a voter of his. I do always say I still have love and forgiveness in my heart for those who truly regret and not simply because they aren’t getting as rich as they thought they would. I have been very touched by the unknown allies I’ve found among people of all races. As for this… it’s also white guy privilege to have this opinion. Winners no matter the cost is not tenable, but I don’t hate him.
Lucky you!
Um, yeah, I pretty much did. My mother voted for Trump, knowing that my daughter might lose her health insurance. I speak to her, but it is really unforgivable. Worse, my sister in law voted for Trump and her 26 year old son will be changing jobs soon and he has – wait for it – pretty bad Crohn’s disease.
The stupid is so bad, it hurts to watch.
I could never shut my family completely out of my life. My mother also voted for Trump, but like many others she believed he would be able to handle things well. I warned her they would lose Medicare and I would lose Medicaid. I’m in trouble without this insurance and I’m not able to even HAVE a job to change because I have severe and uncontrollable epilepsy. Just had a damn seizure a few minutes ago.
Trump and his naive supporters situation is bad and painful to see, but I won’t let him ruin my family love
Yes
This guy is dumb: What’s the point of acknowledging your privilege if you’re not really doing anything about it?
I agree with him political differences shouldn’t mean enemies
Yeah. I have a close friend & cousin who voted for that… impossible. & although I cannot understand their reasoning, we’re still strongly apart of each other’s lives
But these aren’t “the usual” political differences.
You’re really fine with having a casual lunch with someone who voted for and still supports someone who tried a Muslim ban, courts racism, and brags about sexually assaulting women?
That’s it, Froma, that it exactly it. I cannot fathom how anyone could be ok with it.
I cannot, I won’t be ok with it. It costs me nothing to believe people when they show me who they really are, deep down. It’s my responsibility to stand, however I can, for those who are being targeted now.
it’s morally reprehensible to do otherwise, to justify this administration.
Exactly Froma. It’s not a political difference when my life is threatened by the administration. This isn’t “oh let’s get along with the other side”. These are not reasonable political beliefs. The country is run by people who would rather “win” by stripping healthcare, clean air and water and basic rights to not be screwed by corporations. And the rest are white supremacists that believe GENOCIDE is a reasonable belief.
I don’t want those type of people anywhere near me. And I’m constantly baffled by people who think this is reasonable or think these idiots should be coddled. Election night I trimmed several people but lucky for me majority of my red leaning friends were openly voting blue.
It seems as if Chris is being made to look like a Trump supporter. Chris said he gives Brady a pass simply because Chris is a die hard Patriots fan and Brady brought 5 rings home to MA. Do you really think there are no Democrats who are fans of Brady.
One of my friends husband is a huge Brady fan (he is Black BTW ) but he dispises Trump. What he cares about is FB, not Brady’s political view.
I have people at my job who voted for Trump openly. And yes I think they are a bag of deplorable but I still get along with them but I try not to talk to much politics in the work place. I also have broke bread with them. Believe it or not there were some people misguided as they may seem only voted for Trump because they thought he would be a different kind d of President and bring about change economically. They might not agree with his ban on Muslims or building a wall. Not all who voted for Obama agreed with all his political views but they thought he would bring about the change they needed. I have my harsh opinions about Trump supporters but that doesn’t mean all of them are racist, xenephobia, misogynist scum. Some are just idiots who may not know any better. Maybe Chris not only gave Brady a pass because Brady gave him 5 rings but he may also have given him a pass because he thinks Brady is an idiot who doesn’t know any better. Even his wife told him to stop talking about politics.
Nicole, your oversimplification of who “runs the country” is just laughable.
I did not vote for Trump, but some of the comments and posts (with all due respect to you Celebitchy) are just getting so over the top here. I’ve not wanted to comment on this because I love coming here and think there are so many really intelligent voices, but COME ON!! People have differences, contradictions, complexities. That’s life. Grow up and get a grip.
Exactly, Froma! This was *not* a normal election.
Its an oversimplification because I don’t have time to line up whats wrong with every single cabinet pick, the top GOP senators and house members and trump and his aides. I’m sure you could google it because frankly I’m not the only one that feels this way. When the current leader endorses hate speech and has advisers that are white supremacists I’m not being over the top.
Right before my daily Church=going mother in law voted for Trump, she talked about her neighbor. She and the entire family SWEAR they don’t have a racist bone in their bodies. When talking about this neighbor, she told me that she was gay, a witch, and dated a black woman. We hit a bunch of buttons with that one: homophobic, religious bigotry and racism. On the way back from my daughter’s college graduation, she and my sister in law were mocking Caitlin Jenner and other trans folks. My daughter and I were irate. My MIL is 85, she is old and ignorant, I’m not changing her mind, but my SIL works as a nurse in a high school. I went off on her, saying, “We both work in schools, I know kids who wanted to fricking KILL themselves because they were born the wrong sex. How could you talk like that?”
Trump voters. Not racist, how dare I???????? Believe when people tell you who they are.
I get your point, but I think there’s a line that should not be crossed. If my friends voted for an extremist party (and I think the Republicans are extremist, at least by my standards), no matter if they’re extremele left or right, or a party that put lifes in danger… Would I want a person like that to be part of my life?
Tell that to Republicans who see Democrats as enemies. We are not talking about respecting political difference, we are talking about people who support homophobia, racism, xenophobia, loss of equal rights, misogyny, etc.
Do you think these people are not bad?
So…..Chris overlooks it because Tom is good at playing with balls?
Still no.
What bothers me about this is that Chris doesn’t even know Tom, he’s said so himself. He gives him a pass because he’s successful at his field, not because they’re close friends or whatever. If the latter were the case, I’d be more willing to understand him, but that’s like me giving a soccer player a pass just because they won the world cup. We shouldn’t put these people on a pedestal where their achievements in the entertainment or sports industry are more important than anything else.
This.
I was talking with a woman at the farmer’s market over the weekend about how difficult it’s been continuing relationships with people we love who voted for Trump (we both voted for Clinton in the general and Sanders in the primary). You love them and you don’t want to cut them out of your life, but it’s also information that does make you, on some level, reevaluate how you look at them.
I’m a huge Peyton Manning fan, and I love watching him play, but that doesn’t excuse his politics.
To paraphrase Firefly: Well my days of not taking you seriously Chris are certainly coming to a middle.
He’s just another bro who weeps over a touchdown like it’s a newborn puppy. It’s pathetic, but whatever.
Why has he been looking so ROUGH lately???? Is he only cute when he’s Cap?
I think they give him a makeover whenever he plays Cap. You know, off with the beard, wash mouth with soap, shower with holy water, dry off with kittens and cornfed babies. Tadaah! 🇺🇸
Chris, bye.
You were rude & annoying before with your “black widow is a slut”, then became decent after that twitter fight with kkk leader David Duke. Now back to being annoying and asshole-like after the Jenny Slate fiasco and frat bro Tom Brady
Ooh, good memory. I forgot all about the Black Widow comment.
Rereading Chris’ comments – especially with the recognition of his privilege – makes me wonder if he is actually being a whole lot shadier in his remarks. He gives Tom Brady a pass on his Trump support because he is just a football player who has won five Super Bowls. That is, Tom is clearly not smart enough to understand all the important issues and the extremist behaviour of this administration, not to mention his own privilege as a rich white man.
The shade is in the statement, “What am I supposed to do?” Chris plainly does not believe Tom will EVER understand why Trump is a dangerous, stupid man or why his policies and proposals are roundly mocked. All Tom Brady can do is throw a football well, and thus people should not look to him for voting and civic engagement advice. It is almost like Chris is patting Tom on the head saying, “There, there, little quarterback, you don’t know any better. You just stay in your lane and play football and win championships.”
Yes that’s how i read it too.
I mean Tom Brady is dim… sorry yes he is. I doubt he knows much about politics or even reads newspapers. I have this feeling he voted for Trump just because he knows him personally.
You are kidding? Tom knows what it’s like to support Trump, he’s not stupid, for God’s sake!
BRO AND BRO TOGETHER IN BIG BRONESS ABOVE ALLNESS… Quelle Surprise said No one ever
No surprise here, either. Hard to miss him waving that True Colors flag now.
HAAAAAAAA.
I live in the deep deep DEEP south, and as I’ve said before, so too shall I say again; if I didn’t have republican friends, I wouldn’t have any friends at all.
Democrats have been secretive and quiet for so long down here that until this election there weren’t many around.
I’ve tried to segregate myself from right wing extremists, but I’m very much in the democratic minority here as far as my friends go. I’m probably the only one out of like my 12-15 closest group of friends who voted HRC.
Athlete privilege. That exists probably every country but in America it seems worse. They get through education based on their sports performances and people look away when they rape or beat their wives. Or forgive them for voting for Trump. Because a stupid sports game is more important.
In most of Europe the education system and sports don’t even meet ( that’s why it’s hard to find football players, for an example, that graduated from college). It makes a big difference.
I know that, my point is that outside of school and university its not that different in other countries. Thats why I wrote in the usa its worse.
I’m a diehard Pats fan, but I do admit I felt really guilty rooting for them during SBLI because of Asshat Brady in particular. I decided to make a donation – not even kidding here – in honor of the five sacks on Tom Brady in Super Bowl LI, to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which is exactly what I put in the “In Honor of” section of the donation page.
The thank you letter I got from SPLC is hands down one of the funniest things I have ever read, and it made my year: “First, Tom Brady will be listed in a future issue of the SPLC Report, our quarterly newspaper that is mailed to more than 500,000 supporters. Second, if not already listed, this name will be added to the SPLC’s Wall of Tolerance upon receipt of a written request from the honoree or their next of kin.”
I mean, I’m guessing the second part WON’T happen. But the first part is pure gold, and when I see that name, I’m gonna have a little moment of pure glee over it, knowing that I put it there in honor of that white over-privileged idiot, while my money gets put to good use.
Boston has such a bad reputation, especially when it comes to their sports fans. Bruins fans are explicitly racist.
It’s crazy that he feels the need to comment about how someone else voted to me. Sure he can comment on his own vote, but this whole calling out others for exercising their constitutional rights to vote as they choose is damn pathetic. Discuss your vote — fine. Discuss why you feel that way — also fine. Shame others? Sorry, that’s BS.
I have no time for Trump voters or Trump apologists. The man is a disgrace.
Are any asking for your time?
Yes, Amanda K. they are asking for people’s time every time they show themselves unable to take criticism.
I didn’t vote for Trump but i have no time for all the anger and vitriol that people on both sides assume with each other over politics. Advocating for issues is great, advocating for policy positions is great, advocating for preferred candidates is fine — but shaming others for their participation in the electoral process is not cool.
When people support a man who is sex-offender, said we should kill the CHILDREN of terrorists (which he did in Yemen,) who put in Jeff Sessions who is as we speak taking away the rights of minorities to get fairness in the law, who is an inveterate liar, it is NOT business as usual. My family voted for Reagan, both Bushes, McCain and Romney. I never considered cutting them out of my life until now. This is pure hatred on the right, and to be silent and accept it is almost as bad as voting for Trump.
#resist
Be angry at Trump. Advocate against him, his policies etc. but hate others on the basis of their vote? Absurd. #ResistPoliticalHatredOfOthers
You do realize that votes aren’t just opinions, right? They’re ACTIONS that determine who gets put in office, what policies get put into place that effect the rights, safety, and opportunities of others, and what kinds of behaviors people feel like they can get away with. Just because people have the constitutional right to vote however they please (whether it’s for a candidate or a policy) doesn’t mean that they have the right to not be criticized for it. When your actions have a negative effect on others, you will be criticized for it. Free speech is a right to (which the right always likes to drag up when it’s convenient for them.) Nobody is ‘owed’ politeness for every decision that they make. If Trump and Hitler could be criticized, the people who support(ed) them can be criticized too.
wow. A Trump supporter lecturing others to resist Politics of Hate ?
I agree. And Brady did not comment on his own vote. He never said he is a Trump supporter. I wonder why people like Chris want to talk about it.
And I agree with the reader “Hashtagwhat”… This site is ALWAYS doing it. The posts are ridiculous.
Not only does he recognize his privilege, but I think most people would have a hard time turning their back on a good friend or loved one for sharing a different political opinion or for them saying something stupid or out of touch. I think thats just what he’s trying to convey.
I don’t think they are friends though. Chris is just a fan. But most importantly for many of us minorities waking up the day after the election to find out that our fellow Americans, especially White Women who we viewed as allies choose a government that will take away our basic human rights, allow us to be killed by police for no reason, allow other Americans to threaten our lives or shoot us with Brown skin and foreign features is not simply a matter of difference of opinion. It is outright putting targets on our backs. Parents have been separated from their families to be deported, many sick children may never afford insurance when the become of age by repealing Obamacare care. Like people are going to DIE.
Now all Americans are going to lose the right to clean air, safe drinking water, a planet for future generations. Like it was our own personal 9/11. We cannot unsee that our neighbors, co-workers, friends smiled in our faces while secretly taking away our rights. The Trump election had way more effect on my life personally than 9/11 or terrorism.
In that case it doesn’t make a lot of sense to talk about Brady. Chris has never even talked to him, he doesn’t even need to turn his back on him since he’s not really part of his life.
You can support a team without idolizing the captain as if he were a demi-god.