Tips to avoid talking politics at the Thanksgiving table

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ)-Even though the President-elect called for unity in a Thanksgiving message Wednesday, many people getting ready to celebrate the holiday are nervous about talking politics with their families after an extremely divisive election.

One family, the Holderness clan, even made a YouTube video, joking about it.

“Thanksgiving day it is gonna come up. Yeah, you know they gonna bring up hillz and Trump,” the family sings to the tune of Flo-Rida’s “My House”.

You probably do not need their warning, though, right? You know the election results are likely to come up at your Thanksgiving meal.

“Very likely, yes.” Jasmine Adkins said at the Blue Grass Airport

“I’m hoping that we can keep things civil because one side is very upset and the other is pretty happy,” Marianne Fox, a traveler at the airport, said.

So how do you keep the peace at the turkey day table? Family therapist Iris Gutierrez says the first step is recognizing how you feel and how your family feels.

“Try to focus on why you are there, why you are having dinner with those people. This is an opportunity to embrace the differences,” Gutierrez said.

The Social Worker says she has seen several clients worried about facing their families.

“Some of them say should I go to the family dinner, should I stay, should I pretend that I am sick?” Gutierrez said.

Rather than pretending you are sick, Gutierrez says think positively about your family members, redirect the conversation to a different topic, and think about Thanksgiving’s historical symbolism of the joining of two cultures.

“I think as a nation we’re all one so I think as a family you have to come together as one too,” Ryan Kent, a traveler at the Blue Grass Airport, said.

If that does not work, you can always try a little dancing.

As the Holderness Family sings, “You guys can become friends. Just don’t turn to CNN. Happy thanksgiving. Welcome to my couch. Let’s all be friends now.”

One final bonus tip from Gutierrez. She says if you can, try to remove yourself from a conversation that could blow up by taking a minute of alone time. Just as long as it will not be perceived as rude.