Devyani – Week 11 – #Canceled: Justice or Judgement?
Throughout the thousands of years that humans have been on Earth, different cultures have popped up, developing as points of unity for people. From language to religion to music to media, these shared references of tradition have been what has held us together during times of societal division.
But culture has also been a source of that same division. With globalization, however, it has become evident that culture and language have been weaponized for the marginalization of certain populations. Colonists staked their flags in the soil of foreign lands and decreed that all native people must now assimilate into the motherland’s “proper, more civilized” culture. Even now, many countries consider certain languages, such as English, to be a standard of higher education. Different aspects of culture have served as points of stigmatization against minority groups by identifying and labeling them as different–as “less than”–an idea perpetuated by authoritative powers.
But it’s not just the government that controls what is to be deemed as proper existence–society as a whole has found its own way: through cancel culture, which ensures that no one becomes “too high and mighty.” Years and years ago, the same would have been accomplished against the traitors of society through a public tarring and feathering, a unionized boycott, or even permanent disfigurement. Now, it has become a phenomenon of public online shaming–for better or worse.
Cancel culture gives power to the masses; in some ways, it’s a form of democracy–allowing anyone and everyone a platform on social media to express their opinions. It shifts the power dynamic by giving influence to the minority and allowing them to fight the injustices that have been committed against their communities and to shut down morally wrong behavior where the justice system might have failed. It has empowered them to combat bigotry and speak up when it seems that no one else will do it for them.
It’s when people become trapped in an echo chamber of backlash that cancel culture rears its second head. People can take advantage of the online frenzy, planting seeds of discourse that are ignited when anyone says the wrong thing–either by mistake or by ignorance–giving them no chance at a social redemption.
Cancel culture has now become a double-edged sword. Where culture originally is meant to have been a means of uniting ourselves under the same umbrella of shared values and beliefs, cancel culture has started to become the very thing it swore to destroy: a perpetrator of strict ideologies. Not complying is synonymous with the death of one’s image. As such, it is a weapon that must be wielded wisely, lest it shatters our bond as human beings.
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| The problem with cancel culture arises when an echo chamber is created behind the screens (iStock). |
Hi Devyani, I enjoyed reading your blog about cancel culture. It’s something that probably everyone our age has witnessed online, whether it be some random girl that complained after going to a birthday party or someone who was found cheating on their significant other. The comments on all of their posts on social media often read things like “get out,” or there are intense arguments going on, debating whether or not an individual should be boycotted.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I think that sometimes cancel culture is mismanaged—people often craft unfavorable images for people with fame, either because of jealousy or because of pure hatred. People who jump on the cancel culture bandwagon often don’t have all the information they need to make their own judgements. Essentially, cancel culture can develop into a form of unjustified cyberbullying, ruining the lives of influencers for little to no reason.
Though I believe you are right in cancel culture having the ability to shift power to the minority and allow them to fight injustices, there are clear problems with cancel culture—even if one acts perfectly, people always find a way to make someone look bad. I’m not sure how we can go about this problem, but hopefully, people will become more rational and focus on theirselves more. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Devyani! I love how you choose to explore the topic of cancel culture; I think I vaguely remember using the phenomenon as evidence for an argumentative essay outline. I have to say, I love how you employ diction to vilify the phenomenon of cancel culture, using phrases like “second head” or “double-edged sword” to describe it.
ReplyDeleteYou do bring up a valid point about cancel culture being democratic in nature. Although, based on the recent examples of the phenomenon that I’ve seen (or heard of) on social media, it almost seems too chaotic to fit the ideals of democracy—that is, it almost seems too anarchic. The forced compliance of individuals in order not to fall victim to this directly goes against the core paradigm of democracy, as it denies individuals a unique opinion in the form of online coercion.