Essay Sample about Cancel Culture’s Negativity

Canceling was first mentioned by Wesley Snipes in New Jack City, 1991. His character, Nino Brown dumps his girlfriend by "canceling" her since she objects to his violence. His usage of "canceling" was misogynistic and vulgar. Next, in 2010, it resurfaced in "I'm Single" by Lil Wayne and was used in an episode of Love and Hip Hop in 2014. It was used as a way to cancel a relationship before it was used as a boycott. This boycotting started due to the #MeToo movement. This new definition of cancel culture is becoming risky and pernicious. Cancel culture is harmful to society because it causes excessive hate towards innocent bystanders, it ruins people's future and it damages mental health. Cancel culture is becoming more and more apparent leading more issues to arising. 

Cancel Culture causes excessive hate towards innocent bystanders. Cancel culture has caused many problems to arise with people on the internet as well as in person. Pamela Rutledge is Director of the Media Psychology Research Center and is a part of the media psychology program at Fielding Graduate University. "But where it was once focused on authority figures, public humiliation and shaming have become the "go-to" means of voicing disapproval, real or imaginary, against anyone. It's gone from social issues to personal ones, from celebrities to classmates." (Rutledge). This quote proves my statement that canceling culture causes excessive hate. This new trend rewards people saying hurtful and disrespectful comments towards people that make mistakes. These poor innocent people who say one wrong thing or make one wrong move on the internet and they get "canceled" or get pounded with hate comments. These harmful comments just add fuel to the fire that is hate. More and more hate is then put into the world and onto the internet because of the these cancel culture trollers. This hate then leads to many negative outcomes such as violent events, divided people, etc. So much hate and negativity are directed towards uninvolved people. Hate is not the only aftermath of this culture, there are other consequences. 

Cancel Culture can and has destroyed people's lives and ruined their future. Many people will post pictures on the internet or tweet random things without thinking. Sometimes there are repercussions that they don't think of beforehand, this happened to Natasha Tynes when she tweeted a picture of her on the subway, she was then featured on Good Morning America. Lesley Hauler is a social media producer at Good Morning America, she was an associate audience development manager at AOL for 2 years. "It took less than 240 characters and 35 minutes to dismantle a career and book she spent four years writing." (Hauler). All the negative information that surrounds the victim got canceled, which leads to a future that is hard to deal with. Most cancel victims are fired from their jobs and have a hard time finding a new one. All the hurtful comments about this person have consequences on their life which are unfair and not just. The victims of cancel culture end up with a life that is less than what they started with and most times it is for a ridiculous reason. Some consequences of canceling culture greatly affect your mind as well as your body.

Cancel culture has ruined many people's mental health. Many mental effects happen because of bullying, many people know this. Cancel culture is very similar to bullying, it is degrading, ostracizing, etc. Lindsay Toler is a senior engagement producer at St. Louis Public Radio. She has a bachelor's degree in journalism and sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. "Like bullying, if you've been canceled, it can make you feel ostracized, socially isolated, and lonely. And research shows that loneliness is associated with higher anxiety, depression, and suicide rates." (Toler). There are many lasting consequences from getting canceled; a degrade in mental health is a common consequence. The amount of hate that you could receive leads to minor or major anxiety. Sometimes depression is a repercussion. Receiving hate comments or negative messages leads to anxiety. Many times, eating disorders occur because of body shaming on the internet.  Depression and anxiety are just two examples of what your mind could attain from cancel culture, yet others still believe cancel culture is for the best. 

Some people believe that a cancel culture helps to hold people accountable for their misjudgment. The phrase was first created by Tarana Burke in 2006. This movement led to many powerful people being exposed and charged for sexual assault. Alyssa Milano, in 2017, reintroduced the hashtag and encouraged men and women to share their stories and to reach out and be vocal. "The #metoo movement gave innumerable women (and some men) the ability to call out their countless abusers in a forum where the accusations might be heard and matter." (Goldhill). Believing that cancel culture holds people accountable for their missteps is not incorrect. Cancel culture was originated for that purpose, so the root of cancel culture does fit that goal. The problem with cancel culture is that it veered off its pass, it has morphed from a positive idea to a negative trend. This trend of hurting other people has such negative aftermath. Many people deal with harmful consequences because of canceled culture. People lose jobs, lose relationships and deal with serious mental health repercussions. There are many reasons why canceling culture is harmful to people and society. Believing that there are more positives than negatives is fictitious.  

Cancel culture has many issues that have arisen due to it. There are too many negatives for this culture to keep thriving. Cancel culture has many negative effects on society. There is much more social media hatred and negativity spreading, some people's future, like Natasha, is being punished, and people's mental health has degraded.