Meme vs. Mean
Reverse-engineer a meme of your choice. Why & how did it go viral?
Back in September an episode aired on Dr. Phil showcasing a highly dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship. At 13 years old Danielle has been arrested multiple times for stealing cars, framing her mother for drug abuse, stolen credit cards and ran away from home. For a few weeks now a meme has been circling the internet featuring Danielle’s face and now signature slogan “cash me outside howbow dah.”
Similar other viral memes it’s not difficult to see why this particular one became so popular. From her unique accent — which she said is “from the streets,” outrageous behaviour, and wild sense of style; Danielle is the kind of hot mess people love to watch unravel. The catchphrase is easily adaptable as shown through the many creative ways it has been used.
Like most people my age I enjoy the humor of memes and the fun in sharing them with my friends on social media. As part of our popular culture and they can reflect trends within society — just pick any topic and there is probably a meme to go with it. But sometimes it can be hard to differentiate between what is actually ok to laugh at and what is flat-out wrong. When I saw the actual footage posted on Dr. Phil’s YouTube page I immediately hated myself for thinking it was funny. All of the memes, tweets, and comments out there are laughing at (not with) a 13-year-old girl who clearly needs professional help instead of internet fame.
I came across a headline a little while ago that compared how the internet has reacted to “cash me outside howbow dah” and Barron Trump. For those that weren’t aware — on January 20th, SNL writer posted this now deleted tweet which sparked an online outcry leading to her suspension.
A large number of people quickly came to Barron’s defense, slamming Rich for bullying a child. Numerous online articles have been posted in defense of Barron Trump — even Chelsea Clinton, tweeted out her stance on the matter.
My reaction to Rich’s tweet was completely different from the one I had when I saw the “cash me outside” memes. As soon as I saw what Rich had posted I couldn’t believe a respectable adult could ever write something so cruel about a 10-year-old, yet I found the memes about Danielle funny. If you scroll through the comment section on a few of the Dr. Phil videos on YouTube, the things written about Danielle are so hateful and rude I can’t even bring myself to post them here as a way to show in comparison.
Now it’s probably safe to say that Barron Trump hasn’t stolen a car or tried to frame his mother for possessing drugs and we know Danielle isn’t the daughter of the wealthy billionaire turned president but despite these obvious differences somehow we’ve decided that it’s ok to make fun one of these kids and not the other. I know we could argue that Danielle and her mother brought this on themselves by willingly going on a TV show that takes real people — often from lower income or disadvantaged homes — with serious problems and turns them into home entertainment but the bottom line is that both of these kids were victims of some pretty severe online bullying.
I’ve heard people say many times that our society has become too sensitive and can’t take a simple joke. By writing this I have to wonder where the line gets drawn because honestly I’m more confused than ever. If we can bully, attack and laugh at one kid shouldn’t people be allowed to do the same to someone else without any repercussions? Would Rich have been suspended if her tweet was directed at Danielle?
When we discriminate against someone because of their social status it’s called classism, but if we turn it into a meme all of a sudden it makes it ok to laugh. Since the beginning of time we’ve been taught to “treat others the way you’d want to be treated.” So shouldn’t that make everything fair game or entirely off limits? I know I wouldn’t want to be made into a viral meme or threatened in YouTube comments and I’m sure other people wouldn’t like it either.
