The Endless Debate on Cancel Culture

By: Rylee Matthews

Over the course of the last decade, the internet has created its own form of mass shaming known as cancel culture. Cancel culture was created to acknowledge and call out celebrities, brands, or public figures for behavior that is not considered socially acceptable. For example, author J.K. Rowling, famously known for the Harry Potter series, has faced severe backlash over her discouraging comments about the transgender community and her repeated use of racial stereotypes within her books. This has caused many critics and readers to essentially boycott the series, thus permanently tainting her image.

Cancel culture is most prominent on applications such as TikTok and Twitter, and in recent years it has skyrocketed. Within its newly found popularity, a debate has formed that considers its effectiveness. On one hand, thousands of social media users believe that cancel culture is important. It holds public platforms accountable for their actions and sets an example for others in the media to follow. On the other hand, many believe that cancel culture is ineffective and just another loophole to start drama online. 

These opposing viewpoints have divided many teengers at Mauldin High School. Sophomore Savannah Little and senior Hayley Forstot have graciously offered their input on this debate. 

Savannah Little: In support of cancel culture.

Personally, I am in support of cancel culture because I think people get too many chances after they do something wrong. Some popular creators and influencers get “canceled” for making ignorant and offensive comments. In some of these circumstances, they may not be aware that what they did was offensive or socially wrong, but most of the time that’s just a weak excuse and they should know better. If given the opportunity to use this excuse, celebrities and influencers will continue to use it over and over again, expecting people to forgive them and never really learning from their mistakes. Essentially, this excuse is just a way for the person being called out to justify their ignorance without any real backlash or repercussions. With cancel culture, the repetition of this excuse becomes limited and cut off completely. 

Also, I am in support of cancel culture because it warns other people that they need to be more careful and aware of what they are saying and how they are acting. Cancel culture is a way to shine a light on actions that are really offensive and teach people what's right and wrong. A lot of people that are affected by cancel culture might have grown up sheltered and don’t know how offensive their words and actions can be. Cancel culture allows them to learn that they need to think before they speak and act. 

Hayley Forstot: In opposition of cancel culture.

Cancel culture is extremely toxic. It encourages people to ignore certain issues by just “canceling” people. If there are no conversations about controversial issues then they are bound to happen again. I think cancel culture started becoming more prevalent during the pandemic because people were bored at home and just wanted to start drama. Cancel culture is also a lot more popular with current generations because there are more people on social media. I think it is very harmful to talk about such personal topics on public forums especially when the law is involved. Adding on to that, everything on the internet stays on the internet (digital footprint) and cancel culture can affect people’s family members and other future generations. It’s also very hard to “uncancel” a person so that singular mistake that was made will most likely surround that person for the rest of their lives, even if it was a false allegation. Some examples of this are when celebrities say slurs on the internet, only for the video to resurface years later. This has happened to singers, influencers, and more, so no one is immune from being canceled. Morgan Wallen, Trisha Paytas, David Dobrik, James Charles, Kanye West, and Ellen Degenres are just some of the people who have been canceled. In conclusion, the toxicity of cancel culture needs to end. While I am not justifying anyone’s actions, how would others feel if their worst moment was out on the internet for everyone to see?