Jessica Guynn

USA TODAY

SAN FRANCISCO — For the swearing in, some people swore off social media.

Christine Schultz and her family shut off the television and their social media accounts to protest the inauguration of President Donald Trump. The 49-year-old mother of four says she even took down the American flag that has hung in front of her Spokane, Wash., home for the 10 years she has lived there.

"I feel like so much of this administration is dangerous to our nation," Schultz said. "It's my responsibility as an American citizen to speak out."

It's official: The nation on Friday was as divided on social media as it was at the polls in November.

Under the #InaugurationBlackout hashtag, people pledged to stay off social media or switch their attention on Facebook and Twitter to anything but Trump, streaming Spike Lee's Malcolm or the 1978 musical The Wiz. For them, Friday was a national day of mourning and resistance. Garbed head to toe in black, they turned their profile pictures black and struck back at Trump the best way they knew how: by depriving him of social media mentions and television ratings.

The tone could not have been more different among Trump supporters who took to social media to rejoice. Facebook and Twitter overflowed with comments on everything from praise for Melania Trump's Jackie Kennedy-styled dress and gloves to scorn for protesters attempting to block entrances to the inauguration. "Proud to be an American!" tweeted actor Scott Baio.

In Knightstown, Ind., Trump supporter Gayla Baer-Taylor celebrated under the hashtag #Inauguration. For the last 16 months, she has been glued to social media to stump for her candidate, attending Trump rallies streamed on Facebook Live and chatting up fellow Trump supporters on Twitter. Rather than fly to Washington, Baer-Taylor decided to stay put in the company of her digital friends, sharing observations, photos and videos of the festivities with others on social media.

"It's a fun way many of us at home are able to 'be there,'" she said.

Being there is exactly what Debbie Piper studiously avoided on Friday. The 60-year-old usability researcher and Hillary Clinton supporter from Cincinnati says she stayed off Facebook once the inauguration began.

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"Too many pictures, videos and quotes that will only frustrate and likely aggravate me," she said. "The only reason I will look (at Facebook) is to check on my friends who are en route to the Women's March, just to see how they are doing and if they are arriving safely."

She made an exception for Twitter, an important source of news where she says she follows "fairly like-minded" people. "I do want to know if there is anything truly important to me happening, such as any change to George H.W. Bush or Barbara, who are in my thoughts and prayers," Piper said.

Even in Silicon Valley, where social media is the lifeblood of daily interaction, people of all political stripes decided to unplug for the day. Tech entrepreneur and independent voter Ben Parr took a rare break for the inauguration.

"I can already predict the posts my friends will write, both praising and despairing over Trump's inauguration," said the 31-year-old co-founder of Octane AI. "I'm not going to learn anything new, and all being on social media will do for me is stir up negative feelings. So I've decided to sit out the sideshow and focus on getting work done. There will be plenty of opportunities for me to engage in the political process over the next four years."

In Albany, Ga., Jarvita Parker says she couldn't bring herself to sit out the inauguration. She turned off her television and dressed in black to represent her feelings of sadness and uncertainty for the nation. But, she says, she stuck it out on social media, driven to give "moral support and encouragement to anyone who needs it."

The 32-year-old, who was born partially blind with bone joint disease and whose family depends on coverage under the Affordable Care Act, says she fears the country is rewinding history to a time when men and women "were not treated as equals regarding race, voting rights, sexual orientation, education, career opportunities and gender."

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"We have a moral and ethical duty to our country to voice our concerns about Trump and his incoming administration, Parker said.

Social media addiction ultimately won the day for some Clinton supporters who boycotted the inauguration but couldn't bring themselves to "blackout" social media.

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Carolyn Kaba, a 50-year-old retail marketer from Miami who refused to watch the ceremony, says she's no more capable of signing off social media than President Trump. So she made the symbolic gesture of turning her profile picture black on social media.

"There is not a lot material that we can do," Kaba said of Trump and his election. "It's such a petty thing to do, to tweet out a black box on social media. But petty is where he's at. That's where we meet him."