Katy Perry divides Twitter users after revealing she consoled family members who supported Trump

Katy Perry has revealed she reached out for family members who voted for President Donald Trump following Joe Biden’s victory on Saturday. 

‘The first thing I did when the presidency was called is text and call my family members who do not agree and tell them I love them and am here for them,’ Katy, 36, tweeted. ‘#FamilyFirst. Call your family today. Happy Sunday.’

The well-intentioned post sparked backlash, however, with many angered by Katy’s call to connect with loved ones who voted for the controversial president. 

‘Those who voted for a man who incited violence and didn’t care whether margnialised grops lived or died,’ tweeted iZombie star Rahul Kohli. ‘THEY should be reaching out FIRST to apologise and that’s the bare minimum before there can be any talk about love and moving forward.’

‘For the record, I have no beef with Katy whatsoever. I just don’t agree with this particular tweet. I respect her own personal experience and attitude towards unity. But her approach isn’t mine and that’s all.’ 

‘I can’t call my family because they voted against me and my right t love the person I do so no it’s not family first unfortunately and this tweet is a bit insensitive to those who have a similar situation,’ tweeted @kayleighcat.

‘Nah, I’m not ‘here’ for anyone who disagrees with basic human rights mama,’ @danaspecial remarked.

‘It’s probably very easy to do that when your not part of the many minority groups that those people would be perfectly ok with dying. But so brave and enlightened Katy,’ tweeted @JasmineSW3.

While one Twitter user noted Katy’s heart was in the right place, they acknowledged this wasn’t possible for others.

‘Your intentions are in the right place, but this doesn’t work for everybody, unfortunately. Important to consider that,’ @iwasdivine tweeted.

Other Twitter users stood up for Katy, and one said the backlash she was receiving was overblown.

‘y’all calm down a bit, she is not saying that she’s associate with racists or homophobes, simply that she personally respects her family despite certain differences,’ tweeted @perrysbtch.

Another fan praised Katy for prioritizing her family.

‘Putting family first matters, Katheryn. I totally agree with you¬!! Thank you for reminding and inspired this statement. I love you so much Katheryn!!’ @LeeLabi2nite tweeted.

After several days of waiting, America leaned Democratic Joe Biden had won the 2020 presidential election after results from Pennsylvania finally came in.  

Katy has been open about her family’s political disagreements, and in 2016 revealed her parents had voted for Trump and she for Hilary Clinton.

‘Tonight my parents voted for Trump, but you know what? We will still all be sitting at the same table for Thanksgiving,’ Katy said at Clinton’s election night party. ‘And this is the moment we need to remember: that we all love our parents, and we all love our children. And I can rest easy knowing that both of my young nieces at home will never see themselves less than equal, anything other than equal.’

Katy has made no secret of her political leanings, having performed at the Democratic National Convention in 2016 and announcing her support for Clinton.

She praised Biden over the summer once it emerged he had chosen Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate.   

‘I’ve had the privilege of getting to know @kamalaharris over the years and @joebiden choosing her as his running mate is already a testament to his decision making: Kamala is exactly the kind of leader WITH experience we desperately need right now. She’s the type of person willing to put in the WORK to make our country better. Less than 3 months until Election Day. LET’S DO THIS YA’LL,’ she wrote on Instagram.