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Dolly Parton brought divided Americans together. What can we learn from her? | Margaret Sullivan

The Guardian UK Friday 28 August 2026, 09:00 UTC By Margaret Sullivan 1 min read
Key Points

The singer had a serendipitous mixture of humor, humility and humanity. We could all stand to channel it a bit moreThe moment that the world found out that Dolly Parton had died, I was in a hair salon in the reddest congressional district in New York state. The neighborhood on the shore of Lake Erie where I move every summer voted solidly for Donald Trump in 2024.I often pass a lawn sign that has something misogynistic to say about New York’s Democratic governor, Kathy Hochul, and the mere...

The singer had a serendipitous mixture of humor, humility and humanity. We could all stand to channel it a bit more

The moment that the world found out that Dolly Parton had died, I was in a hair salon in the reddest congressional district in New York state. The neighborhood on the shore of Lake Erie where I move every summer voted solidly for Donald Trump in 2024.

I often pass a lawn sign that has something misogynistic to say about New York’s Democratic governor, Kathy Hochul, and the mere mention of Kamala Harris’s name can bring derisive jokes. Of course, there certainly are liberals and independents to be found, but on balance the area leans right.

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Dolly Parton (PERSON) Americans (ORG) Margaret Sullivan (PERSON) New York (LOCATION) Lake Erie (LOCATION) Donald Trump (PERSON) New York’s (LOCATION) Democratic (ORG) Kathy Hochul (PERSON) Kamala Harris’s (PERSON)
Originally published by The Guardian UK Read original →

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