The chaos and terror that has brought fear to many Americans because of COVID-19 has heavily affected all of our lives. It has had an impact on us that is both individual and forceful on our culture and society. The definition of the word pandemic in adjective form is “over a whole country or the world.” And while there are many different pandemics happening across our country, one that has deeply woven itself into the fabric of our lives is cancel culture. Cancel culture “refers to the popular practice of withdrawing support for public figures and companies after they have done or said something considered objectionable or offensive.” The question however, that I would pose, is “Why are we so obsessed with the destruction of some and give free passes to others?” Additionally, where does one draw the line of forgiveness?
We have seen a lot of different cases of cancel culture in the last few months. An example of this is Scarlett Johansson. She claimed she “should be allowed to play any person, or any tree, or any animal.” Her point was that she believed that despite the gender, race or sexual orientation of any given character she was offered, she should be able to play it all. This opinion garnered much backlash, with people expressing to her how her comment was ignorant and insensitive. Those who reached out were trying to say that Johanssan being a white, blonde woman potentially playing someone with a completely different identity would move the mark backwards on representation and diversity in Hollywood. I encourage you to think about where you fall on the spectrum of cancel culture and if this example should be a teaching moment or simply a disqualification for any future endeavors?
Along with every problem comes a solution. However, we as a society have not yet figured out a way to balance cancelling with learning and growing. There is a theory by many sources that “calling in” might help cancel cultures’ negative impacts. Calling in is typically when someone in your community might say something inconsiderate or uneducated about a popular topic. It is common for someone to call in to that person or group of people and transform the negativity into personal growth through teaching them the right thing to say rather than dismissing them because they said it is the first place. This concept can apply to many different scenarios. It can relate companies, individuals, groups of people, and more. If you do not know how to handle the situation, you can call in someone who has a stronger or more general understanding of the topic. Calling out is made to be powerful and educational but also not discouraging. Calling in is meant to evoke a safe space where everyone involved can share their experiences and gain better knowledge on the subject matter at hand so that next time they can speak from a place of education.
To conclude, cancel culture is something that is prevalent at this time and impacts each and every one of our lives, even if we are not the ones being cancelled. To respond to social ignorance, we can call people in or out, continue to let ignorant things fly, or cancel others and hinder their career. Either way, it is important to keep our eyes on this growing phenomenon.
