Should Cancel Culture Be Cancelled?

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Cancel culture is now a term that many of us who have been on the internet long enough are familiar with. For those who are unaware, cancel culture refers to the type of ostracism and shame one faces when they are called out publicly for their misdoings, be it online on social media platforms or in person. The goal of “cancelling” someone is to typically hold them accountable for their words or actions, and often some type of response and consequence is expected from them, such as them being relieved of duty from their current job, or a sincere, public apology at the very least. Whether you have been “cancelled” before or participated in the act of “cancelling” someone, everyone can agree that this culture is one that is highly controversial.

An article by Vice kicks off this debate by rallying for the benefits that cancel culture has brought about, its main argument being that “it’s a way for marginalized communities to publicly assert their value systems through pop culture.” This works especially well for people who hold high positions of power, such as politicians and celebrities, as the fear of being removed from their power or loss of support from their hundreds and thousands of fans would incentivise them to at least administer a public apology. However, this raises a whole issue altogether, which is whether the person being “cancelled” is truly apologetic, or whether they are still set in their own ways but have to apologise anyway to prevent themselves from being “cancelled.” Hence, the article states that whether cancel culture is truly effective or not is uncertain, but it is our best bet in “mobiliz[ing] people and direct intentions toward better legislative possibilities.”

However, I am more inclined to believe that cancel culture has done more damage than good, and should be done away with. After all, what good is a public apology if it is not truly sincere? Furthermore, the harm from cancel culture can be seen from when the effects of “cancelling” head in a more serious and fatal direction. An example of this was when the Boston Marathon bomber was wrongly identified by users on Reddit as then 26 year old Sunil Tripathi. Not only was he was wrongly accused, but he was cyberbullied mercilessly everday, with thousands of strangers sending him hateful messages and death threats. Eventually, the public received what they wanted as Sunil Tripathi eventually committed suicide before it was eventually discovered that he was not the bomber after all. With that, those who took part in the cancellation received no consequences while an innocent life was lost in the process.

When it comes to cancel culture, it is extremely harmful when people do not know the full context of things, and are ready to roll with the mob mentality, their pitchforks raised. An article by Psychology Today sums up the detriments and toxicity of cancel culture which I agree with, as instead of discussing different opinions, people are getting “cancelled” for having opinions which differ from the majority group or the group which is most vocal. This is also detrimental because the act of doing so forces people to conform with the majority, leaving little room for intellectual debates and discussions when so many people are quick to “cancel” someone. If this persists, sooner or later, we would all just be bricks in the wall, following the social norm out of fear of being “cancelled”. Hence with that, I believe it is time to #CancelCancelCulture.

Leave a Reply

WordPress › Error

There has been a critical error on this website.

Learn more about debugging in WordPress.