If they can't, they're still my friend. And they won't go away. Faith does not have to do with blindness. It doesn't have to do with not knowing. Faith is based on knowledge, on intimate, personal knowledge.
Faith is trust, based on experience.
Faith has to do with the integrity of friendship. There are times when not to speak up for somebody, not to stick up for them, not to set the record straight, would be a betrayal of friendship. Faith has to do with telling the truth about someone who we know and love. It means not keeping quiet, when we know that there's something to say. It doesn't mean picking a fight.