In contemporary society, there’s a noticeable trend where people advocate passionately for various causes (and themselves), yet genuine empathy seems to have become entangled with the expectation of unquestioned approval: if you feel my pain or joy, you must approve.
This manifests as the belief that they’re uncaring or antagonistic if someone doesn’t share your concerns.
This is a classic manipulative splitting or binary polarization, which doesn’t allow the empathetic party to have their own point of view.
The alternative is to offer sympathy and understanding without necessitating complete alignment (i.e., being able to dip in and out of empathy). This perspective involves acknowledging and respecting differing viewpoints while steadfastly upholding personal principles (boundaries). It embraces the capacity to care for others without necessarily endorsing every belief or action.