How is it okay for someone to be fired for their beliefs? How is it remotely okay if they were fired with no hope of finding a new job anywhere because every person who’s hiring doesn’t want their name tarnished along with them? Not because they committed a crime, not because they broke any clear set of rules, not because they purposefully or seriously harmed anyone, but because they said something that someone on the internet considered offensive? How is this possible in the supposed land of the free? This is cancel culture, and it has gone on long enough.

None of the downsides of this recent trend is behind some hidden, mystical veil. The first result of a simple Google search for cancel culture will even tell you that it’s glorified public shaming and humiliation. “Canceling” someone is something that is typically associated with celebrities. It’s obtaining the support of the general populace on a social media platform (90 percent of the time it’s Twitter) to actively and aggressively go against a single person to ruin their reputation and chances of future success.

I’m not saying that people don’t have valid reasons for being angry at particular celebrities. I’m just saying that the punishment doesn’t fit the crime. I think that society has been given too much power and not enough realization for the consequences of that power. Everyone jumped on to see how far we could go before stopping to ask if we should go far at all. 

Celebrities are often not the nicest people in the world, and the fact that social media has given them the ability to express whatever thoughts may come into their minds within seconds is a recipe for disaster. People have said wholly unjustifiable and inexcusable statements before on the internet; however, this doesn’t mean that they should be punished for the rest of their lives over simple mistakes or misunderstandings, especially when what they said carried no ill-intentions towards any person.

Is it messed up that Chris Pratt goes to a church that is borderline homophobic? Yes it is, but, unlike what many people are advocating for right now,  I don’t think he should be fired from the next Marvel movie for the beliefs of his church. Do I agree with J.K. Rowling’s controversial viewpoints? Do I agree with Gina Carano? No, but I don’t think these people should’ve been canceled for their beliefs. Even if I think they’re blatantly wrong, they should still have a right to express their harmless thoughts without fear for their jobs. Living in fear isn’t living at all. We shouldn’t have to worry about conforming to every new ideology that comes our way. 

I’m not alone on this. The vast majority of people seem to agree. Brady Williams, a junior, states that it’s “ridiculous to ‘cancel’ people for what they believe in… some people may say things that offend others, but ‘canceling’ them is just really immature and silly.” Brendon Knight, a senior, thinks “On some level people need to be held accountable, but also you shouldn’t go out of your way for something to be mad about, especially when there are bigger issues in the world.”

Yes, there are a few people out there who probably don’t deserve their jobs after some of the things they’ve done, but we’ve ingrained canceling into our culture in a way that’s not healthy. People like to jump the gun, and it’s being done way too often for way too little. Cancel culture is going too far, it’s destroyed too many lives and it’s ruined too many careers. It’s time to “cancel” cancel culture.