{"id":18874,"date":"2022-01-19T09:53:45","date_gmt":"2022-01-19T14:53:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/?p=18874"},"modified":"2022-01-19T09:53:45","modified_gmt":"2022-01-19T14:53:45","slug":"christian-author-podcaster-dr-jeff-myers-on-why-cancel-culture-is-everyones-enemy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2022\/01\/christian-author-podcaster-dr-jeff-myers-on-why-cancel-culture-is-everyones-enemy.html","title":{"rendered":"Christian author\/podcaster Dr. Jeff Myers on why Cancel Culture is everyone’s enemy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here’s the latest from the crossroads of faith, media & culture: 01\/19\/22<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Canceling Cancel Culture.<\/strong> As an educator, entrepreneur and host of The Dr. Jeff Show<\/strong><\/em><\/a> podcast, Summit Ministries<\/a> President Dr. Jeff Myers<\/strong> is known for combining fresh insights, balance and humor with his unabashedly Christian worldview.\u00a0 He is the author of 14 books, including the textbooks Understanding the Faith<\/i><\/a>,<\/strong>\u00a0Understanding the Times<\/strong><\/a><\/i>,\u00a0<\/i>and\u00a0Understanding the Culture<\/a><\/i> <\/strong>which are studied by tens of thousands of faith and philosophy students. Here he offers his thoughts on why Cancel Culture and why – no matter our differing faith or political perspectives – everyone has a stake in fighting it and standing up for free speech.<\/p>\n

\n

JWK: How do you define Cancel Culture\u00a0<\/i>and why do you see it as so dangerous?<\/b><\/p>\n

Dr. Jeff Myers: <\/b>Cancel culture started as way to express disagreement with companies by withdrawing support. It has evolved into a form of bullying others for their disagreement.<\/p>\n

Why is cancel culture dangerous? Healthy societies require tolerant dialogue, not hostile self-righteousness. At some point the public conversation stopped being about holding powerful people accountable and became instead about targeting fellow citizens for social harm. America is chilly right now. The vast majority of both Republicans and Democrats say that they are afraid to share their opinions out of fear of losing their jobs.<\/p>\n

The cancel culture can also be deadly. Reputations and lives are destroyed. My friend Mike Adams<\/strong> was a well-known professor and free speech champion. He had a devastating wit, but he was no bully. Mike was forced out of his professorship through a campaign orchestrated by a former trustee of his university. Humiliated by losing his job, Mike spiraled into depression and ended his own life.\u00a0The accusations against him have proven untrue. His attackers moved on to other targets. But the loss of Mike is forever. The sad irony is that Mike stood up for everyone\u2019s free speech. A small handful of people used the kinds of freedom Mike stood for to ruin him.<\/p>\n


JWK: What do you say to those who say that either that Cancel Culture<\/i>\u00a0doesn’t exist or that – if it does – it’s actually more like\u00a0Consequence Culture<\/i>? After all, shouldn’t people be held accountable for the things they say and do for those they choose to associate with?<\/b><\/p>\n

JM:<\/strong> The cancel culture is real. Ryan Lizza<\/strong> of Politico<\/strong> says that 40% of voters claim to have engaged in cancel culture. Ten percent say they participate \u201coften.\u201d The Politico poll found that half of Democrats have admitted to being involved in the cancel culture and more than half of voters 18-34 say they have participated. So it is mostly young liberals who are doing it. Yet a third of Republicans say they have been involved as well.<\/p>\n

I believe in accountability. As an example, for many years I served as a professor and had to occasionally hold students accountable for cheating or plagiarizing. I would try to get them to see the error of their ways. I would give them a failing grade for that particular assignment. But publicly humiliating the student or trying to destroy their college career? That should be off the table. Restoration is the goal, not revenge. Most people get this. But the small percentage of our population that doesn\u2019t has wreaked a lot of havoc.<\/p>\n

JWK: Canceling people is often done in the name of what most people would consider to be positive goals – for example anti-racism. Why is that wrong? We do want to stamp out racism, don’t we?<\/b><\/p>\n

\n

JM:<\/strong> On the surface, cancelers seem to be motivated by virtue. But virtue means showing high moral standards to inspire good qualities in others. Nastiness and shaming are not virtuous. They don\u2019t bring about positive results. I understand the impulse to \u201cdo something,\u201d but whipping others into an angry mob isn\u2019t a path to virtue. People become virtuous when those they respect personally connect with them in a personal way and ask them to change. This is neither the goal nor the outcome of cancel culture, in my view.<\/p>\n

JWK: George Orwell’s classic novel\u00a01984<\/i>\u00a0used to be required reading in many schools because it was seen as a cautionary tale against government authoritarianism, Thought Police and the pressuring people to accept 2+2=5 dystopian login. I’ve heard it said that some of today’s political and cultural leaders seem me be using it more as a how-to manual. Now, writers like Orwell, Mark Twain and Shakespeare who for generations have stood the proverbial\u00a0test of time<\/i>\u00a0are being pushed reading lists in favor of more diverse authors with more diverse perspectives. More perspectives are good – but, in your view, is this more about diversity or about erasing the past? And why does it matter?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
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JM:<\/strong> I\u2019m for diversity. I regularly engage with people who see things differently. I encourage my students at Summit Ministries to do the same. But cancel culture is not about thinking more\u00a0clearly<\/i>. It is about thinking\u00a0less<\/i>\u00a0by eliminating thoughts you disagree with from the conversation. That\u2019s what Orwell warned against. One of his characters in 1984<\/em> said, \u201cDon\u2019t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible,\u00a0because there will be no words in which to express it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

JWK: Why does Cancel Culture exist? What is its purpose and how can it be effectively resisted?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

JM:<\/strong> Cancel culture exists because some people don\u2019t really want to dialogue. Rather, they want to shut those with whom they disagree out of the conversation. Plus, dialogue is hard. Face to face disagreement is uncomfortable. And honestly, we\u2019ve been trained by our culture to think that hard equals bad.<\/p>\n

How can cancel culture be resisted? I think the first step is to recognize that everything comes down to people, not faceless nonentities. Dignity is based on our shared humanity, not our shared agreement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

JWK: \u00a0You say “Self-proclaimed Christians of both the conservative and liberal variety can be mighty mean cancelers.” What do you mean by that? What does Jesus have to say about Cancel Culture?<\/b><\/p>\n

JM:<\/strong> In a study jointly conducted by Summit Ministries and the Barna Group<\/strong>, 62% of church-going Christians under 45 strongly agreed or agreed somewhat \u201cIf your belief offends someone or hurts their feelings, it is wrong.\u201d On the surface, it seems to be an expression of tolerance. But if you speak out on a tough issue and someone says they are offended, does that mean you\u2019re wrong?<\/p>\n

As the leader of a Christian ministry, I get a fair bit of criticism. Some comes from non-believers who think I\u2019m wrong, which is fine. Some comes from fellow Christians, which is fine, too. But I\u2019ve noticed that many people\u2014including Christians\u2014lead with how offended they are rather than expressing reasons for their disagreement. If I have a disagreement with someone that doesn\u2019t mean they are obligated to sooth my feelings of offense.<\/p>\n

It is completely fine to say to someone, \u201cHere is what you said, and while you may have not intended it this way, here\u2019s how it affected me.\u201d It\u2019s another thing entirely to say \u201cTherefore, you need to agree with me and if you don\u2019t stop I will cut off our relationship and even try to hurt you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jesus said, \u201cYou have heard that it was said, \u2018Love your neighbor\u00a0<\/sup>and hate your enemy.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you\u201d (Matthew 5:43-44). As my friend Pastor Troy Dobbs<\/strong> put it,\u00a0<\/span>\u201cActivism isn\u2019t hunting down people who\u2019ve made mistakes while pretending\u00a0you\u00a0<\/i>haven\u2019t.\u201d When we have received forgiveness, we gain the power to forgive others. Hurt people hurt people. Someone has to break the cycle. That is what Jesus taught.<\/p>\n

JWK:\u00a0It seems to me that both the extreme right and the extreme left are given to Cancel Culture because neither can accept nuance. How can those of us – the majority I think – who can see the grain of truth in each side work to bring the culture and politics back toward something closer to balance?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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JM:<\/strong> <\/b>My organization Summit Ministries has done a lot of polling to understand this cultural moment. We are finding signs of hope. 93% believe that it is very important or somewhat important to improve the level of confidence we have in one another. Only 5% say they respond to disagreement by shutting others out of their lives. Nasty people will be nasty but we don\u2019t have to let the worst among us dictate how we seek the best between us.<\/span><\/p>\n

JWK:<\/b> <\/span>Is it just me or have words and phrases like racism, “settled science,” misinformation, anything-phobic\u00a0<\/i>and “The Big Lie” been weaponized to shut down debate and prevent – and cancel – dissenting voices? What role does gaining control of the language play in Cancel Culture?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u00a0<\/b>JM:<\/strong> <\/b>Language gets weaponized when people stop believing that the truth can be found through rational dialogue. The postmodern impulse is that we can\u2019t know what the truth is, so the best we can do is tell our stories and try to win power. It isn\u2019t about winning people over, but winning over people. As postmodern professor Stanley Fish<\/strong> says, \u201cyou\u00a0are\u00a0<\/i>entitled to your own facts if you can make your version of them stick.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do you see the danger?\u00a0What is to stop crafty people with lots of money or influence from manipulating public perceptions to advance their viewpoint and squelch others? This is the very nature of propaganda.<\/p>\n

Historically, when people reject truth they don\u2019t try to become better at persuasion. They choose force. The wide, straight road to injustice and tyranny is paved with good intentions all the way.<\/p>\n

JWK:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0What’s the difference between arguing as an aggressor and arguing as an advocate?<\/b><\/p>\n

JM:<\/strong><\/b> In his book Challenging Conversations<\/i><\/strong>, author Jason Jimenez<\/strong> observes that most conversations about tough topics fall along a single-dimensional line from\u00a0avoidance<\/i>\u00a0(\u201cYou have your truth and I have mine\u201d) to\u00a0aggression<\/i>\u00a0(\u201cI just dropped the mic\u2014you should be\u00a0speechless and ashamed\u201d). Jimenez says that instead we ought to advocate for both the truth and the other person. Don\u2019t picture two people knocking heads with one another or avoiding one another. Picture two people walking side-by-side, seeking truth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

JWK:<\/span> \u00a0You suggest that it has long been a Marxist strategy to inject inflammatory words and outright name-calling into political discourse. Social media, particularly, seems to be doing a lot of that these days. Why is that?<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

JM:<\/strong><\/b> Marxism isn\u2019t just a set of beliefs; it\u2019s a strategy for winning power. Lenin taught (and demonstrated) that you win through ridicule. He was a master at name-calling. Saul Alinsky<\/strong> updated Lenin\u2019s strategy for current times in\u00a0Rules for Radicals<\/i><\/strong>. He said, \u201cRidicule is man’s most potent weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today we have a perfect storm of Marxism, postmodernism, and a denial of human value. Social media companies recognize this as a business opportunity. They monetize anger and divisiveness. Their algorithms are specifically designed for this purpose.<\/p>\n

JWK:<\/span> \u00a0S<\/b>ocial media, particularly, has become something of a cesspool of nasty insults that have nothing to do with actual debate. Do you think social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter would do better if they spent a little less time and energy acting like the Truth Police and a little more time enforcing some rules about civil language?<\/b><\/p>\n

JM:<\/strong><\/b> Twitter<\/strong> and Facebook<\/strong> didn\u2019t invent divisiveness, but they have learned how to cash in on it. If media companies stopped feeding people content they know will make them mad and then rewarding them for reacting, they could solve the problem in a week. Will they choose good over greed? I\u2019m not optimistic. There is too much money on the table.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Encourage one another and build each other up – <\/span><\/em>1 Thessalonians 5:11<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here’s the latest from the crossroads of faith, media & culture: 01\/19\/22 Canceling Cancel Culture. 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