BY: Savanna Sabb
It seems like almost every week or every other week on social media a scandal arises and shortly after that scandal, someone or something is allegedly “cancelled.” Welcome to the cancelled culture where people who utter an offensive word or post a tweet that is an unpopular opinion are quickly cancelled according to the many users of social media.
What qualifies someone to enter the world of cancellation you might ask? With the help of some examples, let’s take a look. Some celebrities have been cancelled for their unpopular opinions that seem to offend a majority of the demographic that they appeal to.
Kanye West was recently declared as cancelled after he stated in an interview that he believed slavery was a choice. People who once supported him wasted no time in pointing out where they believed he went wrong in his statement and how they lost their respect for the rapper. NBC host, Matt Lauer was also canceled for an inappropriate sexual behavior scandal that took place while in the workplace, Lauer was fired after a complaint arose from a colleague.
The previous examples seem to be an understandable reason as to why one would be cancelled. Some would argue though that the cancelled culture has gone too far, so far that the word “cancel” has even been cancelled. Actress Rowan Blanchard who is also a women’s rights and LGBT activist was canceled for simply going to the music festival Coachella. She didn’t say or do anything that was offensive. All she did was go to Coachella and that simple action earned her a one-way ticket to the land of cancellation. The twitter user that declared Rowan as cancelled claimed that her participation in Coachella was hypocritical because the owner of the festival allegedly donates to pro-gun, anti-LGBTQ organizations and anti- abortion organizations.
People use the canceled culture as a way to publicly prove how against they are to a certain celebrity or stance. A reason that the canceled culture has also been canceled is the fact that one action turns everyone against the person in question. There seems to be a lack of proper explanation. Not including people like Matt Lauer, Kanye West, and even Roseanne Bar (who earlier this year made headlines for a racist comment) and others who have committed hate or offensive crimes they do deserve to be cancelled. For people like Rowan Blanchard who weren’t blatantly disrespectful to a certain demographic or society as a whole the whole cancelled concept has gone a bit too far.
As 2018 comes to a close, I feel as though the canceled culture should leave as well, although at first it was a fun trend to see all of the people and phrases that were declared canceled. I agree with the side of social media that thinks that cancelling anyone and everything has gone out of hand. Not saying that you’re not entitled to your own opinion in disliking something, but have a decent reason before sharing on social media.