Cancel Culture

    We grew up with phones, TV, social media, and streaming services like YouTube, Facebook, and Netflix Over the last couple of decades new social media platforms appeared and old ones got revamped, allowing you to express your love for jojo siwa or express your feelings on what is going on in the big penthouse (White House)  When platforms like this were created, their intent wasn't just sharing thoughts and opinions but we have seen that it is more common to share your feelings about any topic  Political or not  When someone expresses their dislike for something or someone it seems like if you don't agree with what that person is saying over the internet we just cancel them  People come together and put the opponents account on blast, calling them out for what they said because it was racist, derogatory, homophobic or some type of hate speech  People who openly talk down or spread hate should have their accounts taken away, but where do we draw the line  Do we need to be putting a closer eye on social media platforms  What is the right way to control the people who use their platform for hate?

    Taylor Swift, you either have her every album on vinyl, or you hate her. If you didn’t know, in the early 2000s, she accepted an MTV award for best album. As some of us might remember how the rest of the story goes, Kayne West or Ye went up on stage, embarrassing the 20-year-old at the time and saying she didn’t deserve the award. Still, Beyoncè did. When the cameras cut to Queen B, she didn’t feel honored but embarrassed. After the incident, you would think many people would be on Taylor’s side, which is wrong. Ye came out with a song that talked about Taylor Swift. It wasn’t enjoyable; Swift came out and clapped back at Ye for his misogynistic lyrics towards Ms. Swift. Ye claimed Taylor Swift let him talk about her in the song, and she responded with, “No, I didn’t.” it was a huge back and forth of ‘he said, she said. What this situation brought was something Swift never thought about  #taylorswiftisoverparty was trending on Twitter for weeks; anything Taylor would post was filled with outrage fans of Kanye’s and even some of her own. They would use harsh words and phrases,  telling her to end her life or sending threats. Taylor Swift ended up ghosting on social media and not even going out in public; all the hate got to her, and she felt she needed a break from the public eye.

       When someone gets called out for posting, liking something, or supporting a brand or person who doesn't have good intentions, they are put on blast, and everyone takes a swing at that one person It's really 1 against 1 million, there are times where the person who is getting put on blast didn't mean what they said it was just a “different time” When someone is put on blast we have seen what happens: hate comments, death threats, people telling them to end their life and even more things that aren't school appropriate  The internet is not a place you wanna get caught lacking, people shouldn't be saying whatever they want especially if it is hateful towards someone else but maybe we can come up with different ways to describe cancel culture  When we are sending hate to a person who posted a tweet in 2009 about a topic that isn't relevant anymore, or telling them they should end their life, we instead need to find a way to make society more educational I'm not talking about more school education but more of education on things that are socially accepted to discuss and post about  A lot of people aren't super educated on social manners, it's a lot more than not cussing or holding in your burps It's understanding your audience and knowing that we have different opinions and sometimes it is better to bite your tongue and keep your thoughts to yourself  Once we teach that then we might actually see some positive results and by sending “kill yourself” comments are you any better then the person who actually posted the tweet?

       Suppose you had some good taste in shows. In that case, you might remember Good Luck Charlie. It was a sitcom on the Disney channel; it was about a typical white middle-class family, and the oldest sister made little vlogs and tried to record little life lessons for her younger sister, Charlie (about int the name of the s, how) to be able to learn from  Overall it was a cute show. The older sister, Teddy (Bridget Mendler), represented a good older sister well. Leigh-Allyn Baker, the mom of the sitcom, tweeted during COVID-19 in Tennessee schools, stating that they need to wear a mask when they attend school. Leah Baker wasn't having that. She had made a social media post, putting her two senses in the mix. She started by saying she was a California refugee and continued with: “I gave up everything there: a successful Hollywood career, television shows. I gave it all up for freedom and to come to this friendly place in Tennessee and be greeted with open arms, and I love it here. I wanted to tell you that I have two vax-injured children, and they have medical exemptions after the seizures and the hospitalizations. After all of their immunizations, I was obviously granted a medical exemption. So, my children are those rare children who will just be unable to get the vaccine. And still, I would never put them in a mask because their brain needs oxygen to grow, which the neurologists can confirm. Anyway, the real part of the clown show is that you all think you have the authority to mandate this.” She kept going and brought up books, and that is where she lost me; Leah Baker received a lot of backlash for her words and speech that she tried to spread.

         We live in a world where people need to be educated and not so quick to jump down someone's throat when they make comments; trust me, it's tough to bite your tongue when you know someone is in the wrong. Learning how to educate people without hateful words is something our generation and generations have come before us. Creating a space to express your thoughts without being afraid to get canceled is pretty valid; we need to let people think how they think and maybe educate others the best we know how. Bringing hate to more hate can lead to worse problems and something we as a society need to remember: when it's on the internet, it's there forever and no turning back.