Cancel Culture, Justice & Accountability

A video goes viral. A tweet resurfaces. Someone's words or actions spark public outrage, and within hours they've lost their job, their platform, their community. Some see this as necessary accountability—a way of enforcing boundaries and protecting people from harm. Others see it as mob justice that destroys lives without due process or room for growth.

Between these views lie difficult questions: What distinguishes accountability from punishment? When does consequence encourage change, and when does it simply exile, or push offenders to the fringes? Does cancellation make communities safer, or does it just make certain behaviors less visible?

Discussion questions:

• What is the difference between accountability and exile, and where should that line be drawn?
• When do consequences help prevent future harm, and when do they discourage honesty or learning?
• Does cancellation create safer communities, or quieter ones where mistakes are hidden?
• What assumptions about human nature are built into a system that offers no path back?
• What would meaningful accountability look like if repair and responsibility were the goal, not certainty or erasure?

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