The real reason 1 in 3 Americans are cutting off their family

Family estrangement used to be reserved for tragic situations like abuse — but it’s becoming more common and for far less serious reasons.

According to a recent YouGov poll, 38% of U.S. adults are estranged from at least one family member.

“More than one out of every three people you’ll meet today, are estranged from at least one family member of their own family. A sibling, a parent, a child, a grandparent,” BlazeTV host Nick Freitas comments.

Of the 38% of estranged family members, 24% is a sibling, 16% is a parent, and 10% is a child.

“And here’s the part that should stop you cold,” Freitas says. “Researchers have found people are more willing to cut off a family member for having a different political opinion than for committing a serious violent crime.”

“Once upon a time the reason why you broke off contact with a family member was because there was significant abuse,” he says.

“We’re talking about substance abuse, alcohol abuse, violence, perhaps sexual abuse in some way. And all of these, any single one of these, we would all look at and be like, ‘This totally makes sense,’” he continues.

“But more and more, we’re getting to a point where minor political differences are now blown up into something that are existential threats to someone’s safety and mental health. And that is fairly new,” he adds.

While political differences are a major factor in fractured families, another one is social media influence.

According to psychologist Richard Blake, cited in this Fox News article, “Heavy social media use has been linked to poorer parent-child relationships.”

“A study of nearly 9,800 teens found that spending more than two hours a day on social media was linked to significantly greater odds of negative relationships with one or both parents,” the article reads.

Freitas recalls one TikTok influencer who often called for children to shun their families over different beliefs.

“I forget the guy’s name, but he was a trans activist, and he used to love to go on there and talk about no contact with family and how it’s empowering, and ‘Don’t worry, you know, I’m your family now,’” he says.

“Really creepy stuff watching a guy in makeup encouraging kids to cut off their family members because they don’t accept your trans lifestyle,” he continues.

“So there’s no question that the social media influence, I think, greatly contributes to what’s going on right now,” he adds.

“Making the Argument with Nick Freitas” is available on BlazeTV+, YouTube, and major podcast platforms.

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