After being around since early 2017, cancel culture has changed its form from a joking way of pushing someone out of your life to potentially destroying a celebrity’s career. If it is  used as a way to help people see and make up for their mistakes, then I believe that cancel culture is a good.

As of 2018, cancel culture was used to boycott a person, brand, company, show, character, or idea. It points out what they did wrong and if it is deemed as racist, sexist, homophobic, or things of that nature. Then that person, brand or company loses all, if not the majority of their fans, consumers, or supporters.

Actress Vanessa Hudgens for example, was cancelled due to a comment that she made about the pandemic. After Donald Trump stated that COVID-19 could stretch into July and August, Hudgens went live on Instagram and stated: “Even if everybody gets it, like yeah, people are going to die, which is terrible… but inevitable?”  Saying this offended those who watched the video, so in this case, she was cancelled. However later on, she admitted to her mistake and apologized to all her followers. Even though she apologized, people still continued to cancel her.

This isn’t always the case though, there are times where celebrities are forgiven for their actions or comments like former Saturday Night Live cast member Jimmy Fallon. Back in 2000 he impersonated Chris Rock and used “BlackFace.” It wasn’t until 2020 that he was called out for it and cancelled. He immediately came out with an apology resulting in mixed comments from fans. By taking these examples into consideration you can see two different sides to cancel culture, those who are forgiven and those who aren’t.

An important thing to remember is that in America, all people have the “Freedom of Speech” so we are all allowed to think and express what we want, how we want. Cancel Culture forces you to acknowledge your mistake and face it instead of running away. I believe that the idea of cancel culture is good, however, only if it is used in a way that people can atone for their actions. People who were called out should be able to reflect on their mistakes and make a sincere apology to their fans and supporters. After all, that’s the only thing they can do.