Curating Your Digital Space

Social Media Connections vs. IRL (In Real Life) connections

For the past few months, I’ve been disconnecting from people on social media for various reasons. More recently, I’ve been choosing to disconnect from those whose posts and follows reflect values I won’t align with.

Some of them have asked why I don’t just “agree to disagree.”

Some of them have called it extreme to disconnect over “politics.”

So I want to be clear: I’m not disconnecting from people simply because they’re conservative or because they vote differently than I do. I still have plenty of friends with different political opinions, including those who once supported the current administration (but now regret it), or with whom I don’t see eye to eye politically.

The line I draw is here: when I see posts or followership that devalue other human beings (such as comparing immigrant families to animals, or supporting platforms built on hate and fear) well then, that’s no longer about politics.

That’s about basic human dignity. And I won’t keep those connections in my online space.

Unfriending or unfollowing is not about shutting people out of my life. My page and posts remain public.

This is about aligning my morals and values with the space I curate online.

This doesn’t mean I’ll shun anyone in real life. I will always do the best I can to treat people with kindness and respect.

What it does mean is that I won’t be spending extra time with people who promote values I believe are harmful, and I also won’t let my online presence reflect any support for that mindset.

I also think it’s important and worth remembering: online connections operate differently than real-life ones.

Each of us has the power to disconnect from anyone online, for any reason. That’s part of what makes social media different, and part of why these choices matter.