Cancel Culture

Ah yes, cancel culture; something that has been of hot debate over the past couple of years as more and more people in the social media space are getting “canceled”. The term “cancel culture”, for those who don’t know, means “a form of a boycott in which an individual (usually a celebrity) who has acted or spoken questionably or controversially is boycotted”, which is a pretty good synopsis. It has been commonly used when a YouTuber does something stupid and people quit watching them and supporting them. It has been getting moved more and more to bigger names and celebrities and politicians. This is both great and horrible, and that is the main reason I wanted to write this post because most things these days are becoming more black and white. I feel as though this one in specific is a grey area. 

This all started (for me) when beloved YouTuber Jenna Marbles made a video announcing that she was leaving Youtube forever or until she felt good about creating on the platform again’ she wasn’t sure which and has yet to make another video. I had heard of cancel culture before and have had thoughts about it, but seeing what happened to Jenna made me do my research on the topic.

Jenna has been honest in several different videos about how she hated some of her old content, why she regretted it, how she was actively trying to be better, and how she has made many old videos private that she didn’t want on the internet. She has apologized, worked to make her space better and to make her videos more inclusive for all of her viewers. It is not that hard to see where she was coming from in the video as she explains how so many of her viewers have called her out and made her feel horrible for things that she has done in the past, things that she wasn’t doing on purpose or to make people feel bad, and so much more when she was trying to make things better. The video is no longer up, but there are a couple of different channels who have reviewed the video that you can watch. Of all the people getting canceled, she shouldn’t have been one of them.

In keeping with the YouTuber theme, James Charles was a makeup influencer with a hefty YouTube following who was almost canceled last year when a lot of information surfaced about him and his behavior, especially for his age and to the people who were helping him gain his fame. There is some debate over what truly happened but there are a few veins that remain the same. More instances have come out since that has proven he has not changed his behavior. If anyone should be canceled, it is people like that who do what they please and see no consequences. These are the two sides of the coin of people getting canceled right now: those who have made mistakes and are trying to fix things, and those who are not.

The biggest issue for me with the idea of cancel culture is that it removes the ability for people to learn how their behavior has harmed others. If you get rid of a person who is young enough to still change and grow, who can learn from their mistakes, they will never learn or change their behavior. Most likely there will just be anger and an aversion to bettering themself. Once someone is an adult and has had enough life experience to choose for themselves, then they can be canceled. When someone has been shown the proper way to behave and treat people and chooses to do otherwise is when it is time to get rid of their platform. While I am not able to speak on how racism and homophobia harms the people in those groups, I do hope with the current political climate we can help others to learn and give them a chance to be better people before we cancel them. 

This all opinion since there is no science involved with things like this that would make a difference, but I do think there are certain things people cannot come back from. No matter how old you are, if you say or do something racist, homophobic, or xenophobic at your place of work, you should be fired. Take that experience and grow from it, change who you are on a moral level, and do better. If you can’t, if you refuse to learn, all opportunities should now be taken. There is no room in this world for racists and bigots. If you are still willing to support the current “president” after eventing he has done, then you are canceled. I want to say that there is hope for redemption, but at this point with where we are in this country and the administration’s current standings on so many things, if you still support him after all of that, then there is nothing left that can be done for you. Supporting Trump doesn’t mean that you are racist, homophobic, or xenophobic, but it does mean you have decided those things are not a deal-breaker for you. And they should be.

Something that has been floating around lately is a quote on positioned on various photos that reads: “I don’t know how to tell you to care about other people” and that sums this all up perfectly. If you as a young teenager said some horrible things but then grew up, learned from them, apologized, and visibly changed your actions, then you have put in the work to become a better person. All teenagers do horrible things and I can’t think of anyone reading this who would want to be judged forever based on the worst thing they did as a teenager. If you did those things and then continued to do them and continued to act poorly, then there is little that can be done about you. My examples with the YouTubers above showcases that: Jenna Marbles made some questionable jokes in very old YouTube videos that she has taken down, apologized many times for, and actively worked to change and be better. She has done everything she can to be a better person and to learn. James Charles, on the other hand, along with a few other YouTubers, have time and time again apologized for things they have done wrong and then continued to do them. They do not try to change or make things better. They use the drama as publicity and for the sake of being dramatic. These are the ones who have shown that they can change for the better and still actively choose to do and say the wrong things. 

As a white, cis woman, I can only have an opinion on these things as I look in at them from a place of privilege. I would hope that I am not super far off base as I write these things down, but if I am please tell me. My goal is always to learn more and grow in my journey to be the best ally I can be. Please continue this conversation in the comments below about anything I missed, anything I may have gotten right, and also anything you feel like needs to be added. We need to give people a chance to make themselves better and to learn from their mistakes, but maybe there are some they can’t come back from. Feel free to do your research. If you Google “cancel culture” a lot of pieces with different viewpoints will pop up!

Madey

Cover art found here