"Congratulations: You're Cancelled Also!"

I know I’m late to the conversation, but let’s talk Lindsay Ellis.

Before I go into why she’s a hot-topic, I want to make something clear: I like Lindsay’s videos. I liked them even when she was The Nostalgia Chick on That Guy With the Glasses, and she became a go-to on YouTube in the years since. She makes good content. But I don’t Follow her on Twitter, as I have no interest giving in to my darkest temptations. She’s like Bob Chipman in that regard: great content creator, lousy opinions.

A few days ago, Lindsay Ellis Tweeted two Tweets that made everyone roll their eyes. One of them was how Raya and the Last Dragon “ripped off Avatar: The Last Airbender” and shared much in-common with half of YA fiction in the last while. The other was that Soul was “a movie for pro-lifers”. Both times she received backlash, prompting her to do damage control and deactivate her account.

I missed a lot of this drama because of Passover. However, it’s been archived for anyone interested in verifying it. It’s also worth noting that, despite how tone-deaf the Tweets were, these weren’t in isolation. I know it’s not a 1:1 comparison, but Ellis, like Chipman, has a history of off-colour Tweets. Why these two were the tipping point, therefore, is beyond me.

Much discussion has surfaced in light of this about “BreadTube”, or “leftist video essayists”, and how obnoxious they are. Honestly, I don’t think it’s fair to generalize, since BreadTube isn’t a monolith. But I see the concern, as some of these individuals, like Shaun from Shaun Vids, have made me quite angry. And that much of BreadTube is “white and cis” is also valid, as it limits perspectives in the conversation on racism and bigotry.

What bugs me about this now, of all times, is that it should’ve been discussed sooner. Many BreadTube personalities have large social media bases, and they’ve had them for years. With that comes the responsibility to be socially conscious, as they can do much more damage than if they were small-fries. But I don’t have such a big fanbase, so what do I know?

This is usually where I’d make a statement about how there needs to be diversity of voices in this community, and how that’d help remedy the problem. And on some level I genuinely believe that. However, there are three problems that complicate this. The first is that even with minorities there are differences in life experiences. Even in the same communities there are differences in life experiences. No two people are alike, so getting an accurate sample of where the conversation should be steered requires multiple voices.

The second is that some minority voices are dishonest. There are bad-faith actors in every community, and they openly dilute the message. Expecting individuals to always be honest is the epitome of The Scotsman Fallacy. It’s also not helpful to the first issue, especially when it involves knowing who to weed out.

The third issue, and this is the most-crucial, is that minority voices, even well-intended ones, don’t always help steer social progress. Marginalized communities routinely step on and gaslight other marginalized communities, even though that’s not helpful in the slightest. For example, some of the most-frustrating individuals I’ve dealt with have been Muslim and non-Jewish black individuals who’ve assumed that because I’m “white passing”, my Jewish identity’s linked to colonialism and, therefore, isn’t worth anything. This isn’t to indict them as a collective, but it’s been a challenge.

Going back to Lindsay Ellis, I see the frustrations surrounding her through other e-celebs. I used to love Shaun’s work until he referred to Jewish critics of Jeremy Corbyn as “bitter Blairites”, even though Jews aren’t monolithic. I was partial to Jacob Chapman’s content until he used his trans and gay identities to gate-keep queer media. Losing trust in the people I respect is so commonplace now that I’m surprised when it doesn’t happen. That’s how much the internet’s ruined discourse.

Outside of that, while Ellis’s Tweets were indefensible, and her attempts at damage control weren’t any better, some of her critics were acting in bad faith too. Did she deserve criticism? I’d say so. Does she need to understand that her words have consequences? Again, I’d say so. But did she deserve to be harassed off of Twitter? No.

I can’t think of anyone who hasn’t had at least one bad take. I’ve made many, some recently. I’m a flustered speaker in real life, so I make comments that I immediately regret. Even online, where I have time to compose myself, I’ve gotten in trouble for not properly crossing my t’s or dotting my i’s. It’s inevitable.

I’ve also heard far worse from other individuals who haven’t been called out. I’ve seen bigger profiles than Lindsay Ellis say or type stuff that was equally/more-offensive and not get called out. Or, if they have, they’d have their fans pile-drive critics. Social media’s both The Wild West and Mean Girls in that regard.

I’m not saying we should forgive Lindsay right away, if at all. I’m not the one she’s harmed, so it’s not my place to demand that for her. Like with Noelle Stevenson, only those harmed have the power to forgive her. And even then, that doesn’t mean they have to trust her again. It also doesn’t mean she’s suddenly absolved of accountability.

That said, we should be cautious of how we rebuke her. Remember, criticizing someone is simple. I do it all the time! But it’s easy to do it when we’re busy doing what we’re critiquing, and that gets lost in mob outrages. If we’re criticizing someone, even someone vile, it has to be done in a way that we don’t stoop to their level. We owe that much to ourselves.

If anything can be learned from this, it’s that people can be really insensitive at the best of times. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to resume throwing darts at my hostages…