The Problem of
Piling On Contrasting two local
examples of call-out culture and the social media firestorms they created in their wake
By Kevin Michell
C
ancel and call-out culture is a hotbutton topic that has engulfed our society and online interactions. Canceling refers to calling out a person or entity through social media to bring attention to perceived injustice, inappropriate behavior or prejudice and then utilizing digital platforms to spread the message to encourage a boycott of the offending party. But while this mechanism has been positively used by victims of harassment, abuse and discrimination to call out the actions of more powerful people, like prominent businesspeople and celebrities, the discourse surrounding cancel and callout culture has ballooned into a national debate about its merits and problems. Early national examples revolved around sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement, such as when former senator Al Franken was accused of forcibly kissing Leeann Tweeden on a 2006 USO tour, which Tweeden made public in a 2017 blog post, eventually resulting in his resignation. But as call-out culture has evolved into a way for anyone indirectly affected by perceived offensive conduct to cast attention on a person or entity’s actions—like in the cases of actor Roseanne Barr for her 48
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vocal political stances seen as offensive and director James Gunn for making graphically explicit tweets seen as tasteless—discourse about call-out culture has shifted to whether it encourages impulsive reactions in people and a mob mentality that does more harm than good. Cincinnati has witnessed a few highly visible instances of call-out culture in the last two years and two in particular stand out for the contrast in public reaction. On Oct. 7, 2018, Evelyn Reid shared a video on her Facebook account of Terry’s Turf Club owner Terry Carter saying a sexually explicit and derogatory remark to her. The incident occurred after Reid, who had been working a shift at the restaurant, was fired by Terry Carter. The 3-minute-long video includes Reid asking for an explanation of why she had been fired and, after some back and forth about whether he had to provide a reason for firing her, Terry Carter telling Reid, “Keep your legs open.” Public response—particularly on Facebook—was generally supportive of both Reid’s action and, when Carter sold the business in December, the outcome. On the whole, perception seemed to be that Reid was right to capture and publicize
Carter’s inappropriate actions. Business plummeted at Terry’s Turf Club and the restaurant’s online reviews became more negative in its wake. On Oct. 27, 2019, Cincinnati City Council member Chris Seelbach used his social media platforms to share and amplify a Facebook post by TriHealth nurse Cindy Carter, of no relation to Terry Carter. Cindy Carter’s post to her own Facebook profile contained explicit, homophobic and transphobic remarks about the gay and transgender communities. Fellow TriHealth employee Sabrina Sells posted to TriHealth’s Facebook page on Oct. 25 expressing her concern about Carter’s views. The post reached Seelbach after he was tagged in a separate Facebook post’s comments. He then shared to his personal Facebook profile Cindy Carter’s post and expressed his discomfort with potentially using TriHealth’s services in light of her views. In his Twitter post on the same, Seelbach added that he would not use TriHealth’s services until Cindy Carter was fired and included the hashtag #BoycottTriHealth. Seelbach’s call-out inspired a lot of passionate responses on all sides of the issue
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1/21/20 1:25 PM