Julia Kebuladze
March 9, 2021
In recent months, the term ‘cancel culture’ has become prevalent in our vocabulary. Recently, I had a discussion concerning the removal of confederate statues with two friends, but the conversation quickly developed into a heated argument about the necessity and validity of cancel culture. The conversation itself was not very productive, but it encouraged me to think deeper about the matter, and about how effective this ‘cancel culture’ truly is. Does it create a positive semblance of accountability in our society, or does it actually deepen the divides between us?
To give some context, cancel culture is defined as “the popular practice of withdrawing support (canceling) for public figures and companies after they have done or said something considered objectionable or offensive.”[1]However, this definition has gone past just canceling celebrities. Parents, teenagers, and even children are being bullied off platforms for the unveiled skeletons in their closets, and therein are my issues with cancel culture. The original definition, which used to apply to people who willingly put themselves in the limelight (such as celebrities) has now been extended to the average citizen, even children. “It took some time for L to understand that she had been canceled. She was 15 and had just returned to a school she used to attend. ‘All the friends I had previously had through middle school completely cut me off,” she said. ‘Ignored me, blocked me on everything, would not look at me’”[2] is a real account of a fifteen-year-old girl who openly said she liked a song by a ‘canceled’ artist in her social justice class. Certainly, this cannot be the right way to create social change.
For starters, it is important to understand the minuscule amount of time it takes for someone’s word on the internet to be twisted and misconstrued. More often than not, the phrases or videos people are being judged for are being taken wildly out of context. Whether it be only analyzing a singular sentence of what could be a coherent idea or focusing on an inappropriate statement that was “appropriate” at the time, oftentimes what is being focused on was not the person’s overall message at all. This is not to say that just because someone said something insensitive at a time when it was more culturally appropriate is acceptable. However, we should at least be open to the possibility that the person may have learned from their mistakes and consider that perhaps the person behaves differently now. Even today, we are most likely saying things that one hundred years from now will be deemed highly controversial. We ourselves act on a different standard by not worrying about what may be offensive in the future, so we should hold people’s past actions, in certain cases, to this standard as well.
Another thing to take into account when discussing the context surrounding someone’s opinion is their age. Children and teenagers, the primary users of social media platforms, are usually the ones who share their opinions online, as well as resharing opinions of others. Should they make a post claiming that, for example, abortion is evil and policy should be made against it, what good would it do to reshare and ridicule their post? What good would it do for anyone to mock a misinformed opinion? The only likely result of such bullying would be the adolescent turning defensive, while simultaneously sinking deeper into the comfort of their uncorrected beliefs. The adolescent has learned nothing productive except that others won’t respect their opinions, and therefore nothing will change. A child like this may continue to harbor their uneducated opinions as they grow older and could start rejecting the opinions of others just like adults did when this child was younger.
A good example of this rejection of other opinions is the internet sensation, Kaitlin Bennett, or better known as the Kent State Gun Girl. Popularized for her YouTube videos going around asking college students about conservative politics, she quickly became an internet meme for having ridiculous opinions and demeanor. So much so, that when people run into her, many just mock and yell at her in anger for spreading misinformation and hatred. “Each video features Ms. Bennett asking incendiary, often unanswerable questions to young college students while seemingly attempting to steer her subjects into debates about gun control, abortion and transgender issues.”[3] Kaitlin is so deeply entrenched in her opinions and views, it seems impossible for anyone to change her mind, even when she is met with a well-spoken, calm person. She has been ridiculed for her opinions even before she started brashly placing them online. I am not saying that Kaitlin shouldn’t receive backlash for her polarized views and spread of misinformation, especially when she provokes college students by cornering them into bold statements. However, I offer the theory that before the rapid spread of her YouTube fame, that mocking of her opinions cornered her into the belief that she is right, and anyone who disagrees is just a jerk. In return, she too is in the wrong, by expecting to change random people’s opinions by calling them stupid for having beliefs different than hers. Kaitlin has become too far gone for anyone to change her mind, but how she got there is not the default response, but a defense for being mocked for her opinions.
Now, you may be asking, what can be done about this issue? Government regulation of online speech, unless it is distinctly hateful and incites violence, would go against the first amendment rights of the United States constitution. Policies cannot be made to directly combat cancel culture, and I do not think it is necessary either. I fully admit that at times, it is necessary to hold people in the public eye, such as celebrities, companies, and figureheads, accountable for the insensitive and morally reprehensible things they do, especially if they broadcast it to the world. It is fully within everyone’s rights to boycott their goods, block them on social media, and slander them for the virtual world to see. I also believe in the difference between ‘canceling’ a company or public figure rather than just a citizen on the internet. Companies and politicians have long gone unchecked with their ability to sway the public’s opinion with their power; however, average citizens don’t carry that weight. The severity of the punishment of canceling a random person on the internet does not fit the crime, especially when the citizen is not spreading misinformation, but merely portraying a different or controversial opinion. I would even go so far as to say that cancel culture, and silencing opinions of those who disagree with you, is an assault on free speech. There are different and far more productive options to combat this incendiary speech should you see a friend online saying something insensitive.
I offer the hopeful solution of reeducation. If we were to consider the misinformed adolescents again, how would you address them if you wanted them to actually listen and value what you say? If you approach the person of concern calmly and respectfully, without calling them an idiot for their words or actions, you are more likely to create a productive change in their mindset, or even just allow them to start questioning their own beliefs. We should be aiming to change the minds of those around us, listen, and be able to come to a harmonious and united solution. This idea may seem too utopian, but I guarantee, policing people’s opinions online and silencing them is a far worse option than working towards healthy discourse, especially when the opinion is harbored by someone not meant to be under the constant scrutiny of the public eye, like a celebrity. Besides, your standards for what is politically correct may or not may not apply to everyone. We should be encouraging conversations and debates, not discounting people at the first glance of uneasiness.
Besides the moral implications of ‘cancel culture’ on a micro-scale, it is arguably even more ineffective on a macro-scale. Take for example, Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Some claim he is the most ‘cancelled’ person in recent internet history, with his sexual assault allegations highlighting the news for an entire year. And yet, he still holds one of the most powerful positions in the United States. Our previous president, twice removed (see what I did there), said every possible controversial thing, whether it be via tweets or live television. “I’ve said if Ivanka wasn’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her” said Donald Trump on live television, and he still won the position of commander in chief.[4] Whether it be Youtubers or TV stars, no amount of hate has yet cost someone their riches, at least not to the point where they were unable to continue putting out content. Maybe they will be out of the limelight for a while, but they still have the benefits of their fame, however temporary it is. Not to mention, the added attention can sometimes even bolster their ‘popularity’. After all, any press is good press.
I am going to close this piece with a clarification. Accountability and ‘cancel culture’ are two very different things. Everyone should be held accountable for what they say, especially if they are willing to put it out on the internet. However, there are degrees of that accountability. Having a discussion and telling someone why they are being insensitive or wrong is different than sending a mob of internet swarms to hate them. Cancel culture is toxic, especially when it comes down to a personal level, not just celebrities. Slandering and mocking sixteen-year-olds for worshipping a president isn’t doing anyone any good. What needs to happen is reimagining what our public education looks like, reimagining what it means to teach children about race, discrimination, and suffering. We cannot justify being at each other’s throats from the comfort of our screens when it is creating no real social change.
[1] “Pop Culture Dictionary: Cancel Culture”. Dictionary.com. https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/cancel-culture/.
[2] Sanam Yar and Jonah Engel Bromwich. “Tales From the Teenage Cancel Culture”. New York Times. October 31, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/31/style/cancel-culture.html.
[3] Chris Riotta. “Kaitlin Bennett: Who is the ‘Kent State gun girl’ and how is she making the left look so intolerant”. Independent Magazine. February 18, 2020. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/katilin-bennett-gun-girl-ohio-university-video-protest-riot-a9343001.html.
[4] Adam Withnall. “Donald Trump’s unsettling record of comments about his daughter Ivanka”. Independent Magazine. October 10, 2016. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-ivanka-trump-creepiest-most-unsettling-comments-roundup-a7353876.html.
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