Hey everybody!
So today, we're talking about call-out culture.
The #1 culture recommended by dentists.
This video has nothing to do with dentists.
Let's move on, alright.
So here's the thing.
If you have like existed on the internet at all, you've probably seen something like getting called out.
It's pretty simple.
It's like someone says something problematic
or mean or hurtful or something, and another
person calls them out on it, says, "That's
not okay.
You can't say that."
But you know it's not gonna end right there
because it's the internet, and so there's
gonna be some back and forth, and some yelling,
and people aren't gonna be happy, and...
flame war.
And there's a lot of aspects to this that
I wanna talk about, but I guess like the thing
that we should start off with is that I don't
think calling out people is always a bad thing.
In fact, sometimes I think that it's necessary
or helpful.
Like when people are horrible, horrible things,
I think it's useful to tell them that what
they're saying is hurtful and explain to them
why, and maybe, probably because it's the
internet, you won't get to have a productive
discussion about it.
But, I still think we can't just like sit
there and be complicit while people say awful things.
So I'm not saying we should never call people
out; I'm just saying that the way in which
we do it, we need to be careful about.
Because sometimes it feels like calling someone
out is less about convincing them as it is
about just making you feel good that you're
on like the moral high ground.
Like it just feels like a competition sometimes.
Like people are trying to prove that they're
the most woke, and so everything that someone
else says, they're like picking it apart and
talking about all the problematic aspects
and saying that that person is horrible because
they've said those things.
And don't get me wrong, some people say horrible
things, and they're probably bad people as
well, and that's a real thing that happens,
but it's not everyone who says problematic
things, because we're all problematic, and
we all say problematic things.
Like there's a difference between someone
who knows what they're saying is problematic,
like they've been called out multiple times
and they just keep saying it and they stand
by it and they defend it.
That's a problem.
But there's nothing you can do about that.
If you can't convince the person, you can't
convince them.
We can't like forcibly change people's minds.
They're free to believe whatever they want.
So what're you gonna do about it?
But then there're people that will change
their minds and they'll grow as individuals
and become better people, and I think it's
unfair to then go back and say, "Look at what
you used to say!"
Because they changed!
And I feel like this is just a million times
worse with the internet.
Like I love the internet, the internet does
a lot of good, but it also like keeps a record
of like everything you've ever said.
So if you like tweeted one problematic thing
in like 2012, like four years have passed,
you may have like completely forgotten about
it, and you don't hold that view anymore,
and someone's gonna go way back to 2012 and
be like, "Look at what you said, you're a
horrible person!"
And I feel like now people are gonna think
that I have like one very problematic tweet
waiting in 2012, but that was just a random
example.
I -- maybe I do, I don't know.
But like I'm nervous to even give an example
of an individual because I feel like if I
bring someone up, someone's gonna be like,
"Oh, this is how they're problematic, and
here are the horrible things that they've
said."
And yes, I get it, it is important to recognize
when people are problematic and not support
people who are like openly being very hurtful
or doing bad things.
But I also think that if people have apologized
and changed, especially if they said or did
stuff when they were much younger, I think
we should like give them a second chance and
believe them that they have changed.
Like there are a lot of people who get access
to Twitter and other social media when they're
like 10, 11, 12 years old.
Omg, I am so glad I did not have Twitter or
was making videos when I was like 12, 13,
14, even like 15 or 16.
Like, I don't remember exactly what I remember,
but I'm sure I was very problematic.
Do you remember like years ago when people
would say, "That's so gay," when they meant,
"That's so stupid."
And like obviously that's offensive and hurtful
to gay people and it like makes gay synonymous
with stupid, and like we all understand that's
problematic now, I don't feel like I know
anyone who says that now.
But when I was in middle school, I defended
that phrase.
Like, I used it, and people told me it was
wrong, and I was like, "No, it's not, it's
a totally different meaning.
Nyah nyah nyah nyah."
And I was on like Myspace and stuff but like
if I had been making YouTube videos and I
made a video like defending my position on
that, if that still existed now, that would
be very bad.
And I would be the problematic fav, and people
would like drag up that video from years ago
and be like, "Look what Riley used to say."
But, I've grown and changed and evolved since
then.
And that is like the furthest thing from my
beliefs.
Like I believe so many different things from
when I was a kid, and that's just how life
works, we're all gonna learn and change.
No one is born unproblematic.
I mean, no one is unproblematic.
But we're all unlearning this stuff as we
grow up.
We have to unlearn transphobia, we have to
unlearn fatphobia, we have to unlearn homophobia,
these are all things that we grow up with,
and we have to work to rid ourselves of.
Like I'm still working on it myself.
I am by no means perfect.
I say the wrong things a lot.
I try to do as best as I can but I'm not perfect.
So all I'm saying is that yes, if someone
is saying really bad things, we need to talk
about it, we need to address it, we need to
explain why it's bad, and try to have a civil
discourse about it.
And maybe change some people's minds.
But I don't think we need to like attack individuals
or try to make everyone problematic and like
dig into their history about it.
And I especially think that if someone said
or did stuff when they were younger, and they're
now older and have apologized and are trying
to do better, I think we should be okay with
that and we should accept them and like, understand
that people change over time.
Like clearly some people are just gonna give
like a shallow surface level apology, probably
continue saying the same things and doing
the same things, just behind closed doors
so that they can like keep a good public perception
of themselves.
But that's not everybody.
I think most people have the capacity to change
for the better, and I don't know, I just wanna
like believe that people can be good and can
change, and I don't think that's that like
wild of an idea.
So moral of the story, I guess, is that people
can change their opinions.
I took a lot of time to say that one simple
thing.
So what about you?
What problematic things have you said or done
in the past?
And what convinced you to change your mind?
Let me know down in the comments and feel
free to like and share this video if you liked
it and wanna share it?
If you don't share it, you're problematic.
I'm just kidding, I love you all regardless,
even though you're all problematic.
Eh, get it, because we're all problematic
anyway... no matter what...
Oh yeah, side note, because I feel like this
is a little bit more of a chill chatty video,
um, there've been cockroaches in my apartment,
and I'm very scared and still kinda looking
around for them because they could pop up
at any time and murder me.
So I'm gonna go cower in fear and maybe start
building a shrine to my future cockroach overlords.
Thanks for watching this video, I love you
all, and I'll see you next time.
