Does Politics Have a Place on Love Island USA?

Over on Reddit, some viewers wrote they believed Austin and Yulissa should not have been allowed on the show in the first place, and blamed Love Island USA’s casting and production teams for not conducting more thorough background and social media checks. Shortly after the cast announcement, people online found videos of Yulissa using the N-word in a podcast on two separate occasions, and argued that it should’ve been just as easy for casting and production to find the clips, and to take action.

(To somewhat address her removal, in this season’s second episode, Ian Sterling–the Island’s voice of god–simply said, “Yulissa has left the villa.” Peacock has not released an official statement, but on June 6, Yulissa posted an apology to her Instagram for using a racial slur.)

But when it comes to contestants’ apparent political affiliations, fans were enraged and disappointed. And who did they turn to blame? Peacock’s production team.

To be clear, it is unacceptable that casting and production allowed Yulissa on Love Island USA when there are multiple videos of her saying a racial slur on the internet. There is no excuse or defense for Yulissa’s use of the N-word. Ever. While both Austin and Yulissa have sparked backlash online, it’s important to differentiate between allegedly endorsing political candidates and using harmful and racist language online.

Is it obscene to me that someone could vote for a president who was caught on mic saying, “When you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything.”? Yes. Are we currently dealing with the dangerous consequences of people who voted for Trump? Yes. But the reality is, Trump won the 2024 presidential election with 49.8% (77.3 million votes) of the popular vote. We’re not talking about a small part of this country. In fact, we’re talking about almost half of Americans who voted for Trump.

For reality television to be a true reflection of our country and society, all voices should be represented. As long as a contestant is not a danger to others, or peddling hate speech, then there is room for discourse.

On Love is Blind’s season 7, for example, there were more political conversations than previous seasons which shed light on contestants’ compatibility and morals more than ever before. Monica Davis, who later in the season got engaged to Stephen Richardson, asked him about his voting history, to which he admitted to voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 election because he “didn’t like Hilary [Clinton]”. He quickly followed up, saying he voted for Joe Biden in 2020 because he didn’t like the way Trump handled his first time in office. Monica didn’t respond to this comment–though we saw her struggle with his admission, and it was relatable seeing someone process this dilemma in real time. Political differences are a very real and important topic that people need to contend with in our current dating climate– ensuring they are dating someone who aligns with their beliefs and values.

TERENCE PATRICK

TERENCE PATRICK

In the same Love is Blind season, another engaged couple–Marissa George and Ramses Prashad–had multiple conversations regarding reproductive rights, religion, and the U.S. government. On one hand, Marissa, a military veteran, who grew up on military bases as a child, admitted that the opportunities it afforded her changed her life. But she also recognized that her actions supported operations that killed people.