By Mia Hanuska
*This article discusses serious topics such as Nazism, sexual harassment, grooming, and physical abuse. If you or anyone you know is dealing with these issues, please call 800-799-7233*
I hear a lot of people always talking about the harms of cancel culture: the cyberbullying, the walking on eggshells, the ruining of careers. Everyone likes to highlight these issues when the topic of cancel culture arises to prove that as a society, social media users have gotten far too used to hiding behind a screen and sending hateful messages just because something hit them too close to home. Don’t get me wrong, I agree with a large portion of the valid concerns against cancel culture. Most who are targeted have legitimately grown as a person since when they certain comments in the past, and the lack of recognition of self-improvement in the cancelling movement is truly an issue. However, what a lot of people forget is that for the most part, cancel culture doesn’t even work.
Take some of the most prominent “cancelled” celebrities today: Kanye West, James Charles, and Colleen Ballinger. Kanye West, known also as Ye, has repeatedly made anti-semetic, racist, and sexist comments on his social media accounts [Figure 1], going as far as releasing a music video titled “HEIL HITLER (HOOLIGAN VERSION)” and merch featuring swastikas [Figure 2]. Despite these very recent public controversies (beginning in 2022), Kanye has retained his large following, continuing to get over 77.4 million monthly Spotify streams—a nearly 30 million stream increase since 2022—and sell tour tickets, although his 2026 Europe dates are currently canceled due to the controversy. His Los Angeles show on April 3, 2026, however, grossed over $33 million, making it one of the highest-grossing live shows in history. With a new album recently released, Kanye isn’t just living “uncancelled”—he has and is actively gaining new supporters who chose to “look past” his past actions. Although the male rapper apologized in January, placing the reason for his comments on a misdiagnosed medical condition and “committ[ing] to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change,” this does not justify the fans who continued supporting him during the times when the public was told this was the real Ye.
Figure 1. Figure 2.
Similarly, YouTubers James Charles and Colleen Ballinger were cancelled in 2021 and 2023, respectively, after allegations of them sexually harassing minors by sending inappropriate messages and photos came to light. Makeup influencer James Charles admitted to the allegations of him sending lewd photos of himself to two 16-year-old boys, stating “these conversations should have never happened,” in his YouTube apology video titled “Holding myself accountable.” Still, Charles keeps his celebrity status, regularly posting videos to his channel with over 23 million subscribers. Painted, his makeup brand launched in 2023, has an estimated revenue of $5 million, with new products launching nearly monthly. He’s in the same boat as Ye; his brand is thriving, he’s still getting brand deals, and his net worth is at an all-time high ($22.7 million). Are fans able to separate the merchandise from the creator when a large cut of the profit is benefitting an self-admitted groomer? Or is an apology really enough for the public to forgive such heinous crimes? Similarly, Colleen Ballinger, known for her Miranda Sings show, Haters Back Off, and YouTube videos targeting towards children, was exposed three years ago for interacting inappropriately with minor fans, once even sending her lingerie to one 13-year-old boy. Although she denied the accusations, claiming in her virally memed video “hi.” (colloquially known as “Toxic Gossip Train”), “I’m not a groomer, just a loser,” numerous former fans shared proof on their social media pages. Yet, Ballinger, like the others, still has her platform, announcing her newest live show, Pity Party, last month.
Cancel culture, in some ways, has gone too far. But in others, maybe it hasn’t gone far enough. These artists are three recent examples among many public figures, who, despite getting briefly canceled, have maintained their fame and platforms as if nothing occurred. While of course, people can change, are we as a society willing to continue allowing Nazi-sympathizers and child groomers to profit off us? Are we okay with ignoring despicable deeds, just because a celebrity did them in the past? Celebrities are only famous from the power of their audience—as soon as that audience disappears, the celebrity becomes irrelevant. At what point does the mindset switch from “they wouldn’t do it again” to “we are okay with what they’ve done?” Does there come a threshold where, instead of holding people accountable, cancel culture just proliferates their fame? Sure, we can “cancel cancel culture,” but maybe we should focus on actually cancelling evil people, permanently.