By: Hannah Ury, Staff Writer
In case you haven’t heard, Morgan Wallen said the N word. There are many words society deems to be unacceptable, such as asking a woman how much she weighs or telling someone they should go on a diet, but almost everyone can agree saying the N word tops all of them. So why do people continue to say it? As soon as the video surfaced, Wallen was taken off of most radio stations, dropped by his label, and effectively cancelled by the internet. At least, that’s what we all thought.
There is a valid argument to be made that a person can be separated from their art. People who find The Cosby Show entertaining do not necessarily support the actions of Bill Cosby, and people who enjoy Morgan Wallen’s music are not necessarily racist. Even the most objectively horrible people can have talents. However, it must also be considered that listening to someone’s music and watching their show is what pays their bills and allows them to have a platform they do not always use responsibly.
After the video surfaced and the internet was cancelling Wallen, his streams were going up. It was no small increase, over 1000% to be exact. This is a significant increase for anyone, but it is especially remarkable for an artist who had already been referred to as the face of country music. One could argue that people continue to enjoy his music while condemning his behavior if his streams had remained constant or even gone down. Such a sharp increase, however, cannot be defended. Not only are people tolerating his behavior, they are supporting it. This is obviously concerning on the surface, but as you go deeper it has even more significant political implications.
The Black Lives Matter movement gained traction throughout 2020, but was met with significant backlash. Many people claimed that Black people have nothing to fight for, they’re already equal, and at this point they’re just seeking special treatment. Yet, how can we say Black people shouldn’t ask for more than they have when celebrities are shouting racial slurs in their front yard, and their music gains popularity as a result? Additionally, an increasingly large number of celebrities and influencers are getting cancelled for racist behavior, and these are only the ones who got caught. Racism runs rampant in America, and it’s time we acknowledge the problem. Sure, we’ve come a long way, but we certainly cannot call the current state of race relations good enough.
Morgan Wallen is a 27-year-old white man with a mullet from a small town in Tennessee, and while many people were not surprised by his racist remark due to his appearance and hometown, it’s no excuse. However, his upbringing also raises an important point. Our culture condones, and in this instance supports, racism. Whether or not Wallen takes this opportunity to educate himself is something we may never know, but what we can do is continue to support initiatives to end racism, and stand up to those who deny its existence. This is only the most recent in a long line of incidents that prove time and time again racism exists, and we must stand up to stop it.