Cancelling Cancel Culture
By: Gabriel, Maria, Mariela, Naomi
What is cancel culture? Well, It is something that we have all heard of and have seen many examples of, not just in recent times but throughout history in fact. Lets take a deeper look at it though. To answer what is cancel “culture” we first need to discuss what it means to “cancel” someone or to be “canceled”. Canceling is usually when a group of people, or maybe even a company publicly withdraw support, or voice disapproval for another person or company. This can happen for a variety of reasons but is usually because the person who is being canceled did something that others either did not like or said something they did not agree with, regardless of whether it was right, wrong, or sometimes even true. The term Cancel “culture” seems to stem from the fact that thanks to the internet and social media, the act of canceling someone is now not only a lot more common but a lot easier to. Social media essentially created the idea of cancel “culture” as a way to amplify often unheard voices, and to hold people and corporations alike accountable for their actions that harmed others. Many people are still divided on this though, is it a tool for positive change, or a weapon for destruction and censorship, let’s talk about it…
What do people think of cancel culture ?
What are some of the benefits of “cancel culture”?
When cancel culture is used correctly and used for the purpose of making a positive change it can have several benefits.
- It can help to amplify ordinary people’s voices and allows them the ability to make an impact in the world and their community.
2. It can help to hold people and corporations accountable for their negative actions, especially things that they would have otherwise gotten away with if no one was looking.
It can also be argued that in some instances “cancel culture” or what is really public shaming can play a vital role in society, here is a quote that describes it…“Public shaming is a long-standing public ritual that helped to uphold social bonds and make sure people within communities were equal and understood the norms, and to ensure no one got too high and mighty,” says Amanda Koontz, UCF associate professor of sociology.
Why is cancel culture a problem?
Cancel culture can be problematic for many different reasons but some of the most concerning issues are that:
- It can have a negative impact on freedom of speech and can limit people on what they feel they can say without fear of backlash.
- It can unfairly punish those who are innocent or who do not deserve it.
- Does Not allow people a chance to learn from their mistakes or engage in thoughtful respectful debate with someone who has a differing opinion.
- Causes people to divide rather to unify.
Jumping to conclusions
https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a44535376/james-charles-interview-2023/
Cancel culture vs. the wealthy and elite
One of the biggest problems with cancel culture is that it can be a lot less effective if the “target” is wealthy or has a lot of influence. One good example is celebrities, most have entire PR teams specifically designed to deal with things like getting canceled, so even if there is genuine backlash against something negative that a celebrity did, they will most likely get out of it pretty undamaged compared to your average person who doesn’t have millions to fall back on.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1qsVTByzxLRt6Y_DKuQUVRgmabwpztrTUyX-iRIFJaZ0/edit?usp=sharing
https://www.canva.com/design/DAFvgVoY4Zc/4LStCdV7h2hp7SxGMJsXCg/edit
How can YOU help cancel cancel culture.
One of the biggest things that individuals can do to help stop cancel culture is to simply promote and encourage an open dialogue. This means allowing people from all different viewpoints, cultures, and walks of life a chance to respectfully voice their opinion, even if it is radically different or diametrically opposed to your own, without fear of negative financial, physical, or social consequences. Another important step individuals can take is to just stop and think. When coming across something online that you don’t agree with or that just makes you mad it is easy to want to rush to conclusions and jump on the hate wagon for somebody, especially if you don’t already like them, but it is more important now than ever that we stop and think things like what did this person really mean by this, did they really even say or do this, and do they fully understand this issue or do they need to be further educated. This is one of the biggest problems with cancel culture, silencing someone doesn’t give them a chance to learn from there mistakes or even hear other peoples viewpoints. This is why it is important for YOU, yes YOU the viewer, along with all of us, to try our best to start supporting a more open and free dialogue along with the platforms that encourage it so that the marketplace of ideas may flourish, allowing people to more effectively communicate with one another, realize no one knows it all and no one is perfect, and most importantly help us all to see just how similar we are on a human level.
