Found a solution/workaround for anyone else with a similar question.
Instead of using {{ user.date_joined.date }} like a traditional datetime object, I used {{ user.date_joined|date }}
In my template, I want to show the join date of a user, so I am using {{ user.date_joined }} which shows the date and time (in local time zone - same as what is shown in the admin panel). To just show the date, I use {{ user.date_joined.date }}, but it seems to be converting the date and time to UTC before showing the date (I am in EST/EDT - I never remember which is which).
For example:
{{ user.date_joined }} ==> Feb. 18, 2021, 7 p.m.
{{ user.date_joined.date }} ==> Feb. 19, 2021
Is there a way for me to change this so that it shows the same date as the full date and time?
Django User.date_joined.date using UTC time?