In today's society, humans live complex lives. We each have a self-identity that is determined both by society and those we interact with every day. We each act a certain way and perform certain actions as a result of our experiences in life. When we do things, we normally do them because they will help us in some way, whether it be getting through the day, giving us pleasure, or helping us survive. Something I've been thinking a lot about recently is the phenomena of cancel culture that exists in today's society. I've seen it happen with so many celebrities and influencers and artists; they get "canceled" and their careers and reputations are blown to pieces over something they did years ago.

Obviously some things are inexcusable when it comes to transgressions and "canceling" creators. Refusal to change their hateful or intolerant mindsets is definitely not something that someone of influence should be doing. However, I do not believe that one mistake should define someone's career for the majority of their life. Classifying someone as "bad" because of one bad action they took in the past makes no sense. As a society, we are constantly preaching growth, change, self-acceptance, etc., but the reality is that we don't even allow people to do so. We trap them in the past and limit their growth for their past mistakes by publicizing them and shaming them for long periods of time. If everyone in the world was "canceled" for mistakes they made in the past, we would not have a functioning society. Furthermore, it would be foolish to determine if someone is "good" or "bad" based on one action; everyone makes mistakes, and people do change; mindsets, thoughts, opinions, etc. can all change. Social media definitely magnifies the severity of the situation because you can have millions of people hating on someone all at the same time which can cause serious mental health issues for the one receiving the hate.

It is up to us - our generation- to stop the polarizing, hateful trend that is cancel culture and give people the opportunity to better themselves instead of ridiculing them for the past.