Madeline Hubbard’ 19
Contributing Writer
Achilles had his heel, Mr. Darcy was too proud, Captain America was a stubborn idealist and Tom Brady voted for Donald Trump. We need our heroes to have flaws. Nobody likes a perfect person because they are not relatable and they have nothing to teach us. In recent days, commentators from all avenues have argued that Brady is more flawed than most, yet there are many who look up to Brady and all that he has accomplished. A movement started this last season to convince football fans to boycott the Patriots due to Brady’s presumed support for Trump. This movement culminated at Super Bowl LI, with people still refusing to support the Patriots and many news outlets and social media polls showing that much of America was anti-Patriots. Even though Brady’s political opinions may differ from his fans’ opinions, does that mean that they should stop backing Brady, or should we separate our own beliefs from the beliefs of sports figures, artists and celebrities?
When you consider that there are a fair number of Brady’s teammates who are declining the trip to the White House this year because they do not agree with Trump or his policies, boycotting the whole team due to Brady’s support of Trump seems unfair. It’s even possible that the number of members whose political beliefs differ from Brady’s outnumber those who agree. To take a non-sports related case of similar disagreement, in 2013, Beyoncé performed at the Super Bowl with a very powerful political message addressing police brutality and encompassing the Black Panthers. When viewers argued that they did not agree with her political views being an integral part of the performance, her fans countered that as an entertainer, her political views were irrelevant. They claimed that she is talented and her work should be viewed objectively rather than focusing on the message that she may or may not be espousing. Still, others argue that artists and public figures should not involve themselves in politics at all. Nevertheless, the controversy seems to have only benefited Beyonce and her career.
The debate will continue as to whether our entertainers should profess political opinions publicly, or whether we should simply ignore such speech. One can argue that they have a right to their opinions and to state them, just as we may choose to listen. Brady may or may not be bad, but perhaps that doesn’t matter. The outcome, in this case, as with Beyonce and her artistry, is good. His own selfish pursuit of success has led to another win for the Patriots. That Super Bowl win lifted up the industry behind Brady and the whole of New England. It is Jewish custom to make sure that you can take care of yourself first and provide for your family, before you can branch out to helping others in your community and globally. Some may argue that it is selfish to put yourself first, but can you truly help others if you personally are not taken care of? So, selfish as Brady may seem, he lifts the others around him up with his accomplishments. He provides first for himself and his family and then looks out to others. Perhaps one can disagree with his political views, but perhaps, without meaning to, Brady is helping others in his own self-serving way.
