Mark Duplass Asks Trump Supporters for Unity on Charitable Causes in New Op-Ed
“I voted for Hillary Clinton. That means I am an elitist, out of touch, Hollywood libtard,” writes Mark Duplass in a new Huffington Post op-ed calling for unity between Trump supporters and their more liberal counterparts. That may seem like a lost cause, but hey: Duplass’ most recent op-ed called on Academy members to name “Moonlight” Best Picture, and that worked out pretty well.
“You voted for Donald Trump. That means you are a racist, misogynistic, closed-minded xenophobe,” continues the writer/director responsible for the likes of “Togetherness” and “Jeff, Who Lives at Home.” And though he says he “would love to say that all of these generalizations are false,” he can’t — but that doesn’t mean there’s no middle ground.
Duplass recalls that his conservative parents appreciated tax breaks that allowed them to spend their money as they saw fit, rather than how the government wanted to, and he’s applied that sense of fiscal conservatism to both his life and career. He also recently met a Trump voter who donates 10% of her earnings to her church and “believes in ‘taxing’ those with more and handing it out to the poor who arguably need it most.”
His conclusion:
“I am a fiscally conservative libtard.
“She is an empathetic Trump supporter.
“And in these slivers of crossover I can’t help but think…is there a chance for us?”
READ MORE: The Duplass Brothers Reveal Favorite Films in Curated Collection For Sundance Now
Duplass believes there is, and that charity is the place to start. Even if conservatives and liberals disagree on 98 percent of issues, there are a lot of worthy causes — children, hunger, clean water — in the remaining 2 percent. “I also believe that the spirit of giving and support is contagious,” he says. “That if we start with the 2 percent we share, that number will grow on its own. That once this energy starts, its positivity spirals out of control like a virus. In short, that if we start with what we agree on, instead of arguing about what we don’t agree on, we might be able to grow that seed from the ground up into something big.”
The first campaign is for GiveDirectly.org, to which Duplass is donating $10,000; he asked people to match him with $1 donations, bringing the total to $20,000. Google agreed to then match that number, and so many people ended up donating that the total exceeded $50,000. Small victories, folks.
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