It seems like almost everyday there is a new celebrity scandal. The celebrities of today seem to constantly live with a magnifying glass over their lives. Every moment and mistake is carefully observed and then showcased for the world to see and give their opinion on. Cancel culture has become extremely popular in recent years. Some say that cancel culture is too extreme and that people make mistakes. I agree that people make mistakes and should sometimes be given a second chance, but can all mistakes be easily forgiven and overlooked?
Recently, Rihanna got criticized for something that occurred at her fashion show. According to BBC.com, Rihanna “…received a backlash online for using the song Doom by artist Coucou Chloe, which includes a Muslim text known as a Hadith” (a part of a collection of texts believed to be spoken words of the prophet Muhammad). Rihanna received a lot of backlash from people of the Muslim faith, among others, for using such sacred texts during her fashion show.
After receiving a lot of backlash and criticism, Rihanna issued out a statement apologizing for “this honest, yet careless mistake…” as NBC news mentioned.
I understand that mistakes happen since we’re all human, but at what point do people start taking full accountability for their actions? I am not sure if I fully believe in cancel culture, but I am sick of all the excuses being made. Don’t get me wrong, I love Rihanna’s music, but I am having a hard time understanding how this mistake slipped past everyone on her team. I also question if she even has any people of the Muslim faith working on her team. If Rihanna did have someone on her team who was Muslim, this mistake could’ve been avoided.
I feel like celebrities get a pass all the time when they make mistakes, but at some point they should be held accountable. The use of the sacred texts in Rihanna’s fashion show was completely disrespectful. Many Muslim women have been expressing their disappointment with Rihanna. I believe that Rihanna, and other celebrities, should have people from every religion and background on their team in order to make sure they aren’t ever being disrespectful towards a group. Rihanna is only one of many people and companies who have “accidentally” done things that are offensive to a group of people.
I do not believe that Rihanna should be cancelled. I think this is a great learning opportunity for her and her team and I hope they work hard at ensuring this does not happen again. I’m sure Rihanna didn’t want to receive this criticism and I don’t see why this would be done knowingly, but this could’ve been possibly avoided if Rihanna had a Muslim person on her team. I hope celebrities and big companies take note of this for the future. Cancel culture can be toxic and I don’t think everyone should be cancelled after their first mistake, but people should be held responsible for their future actions. I sincerely hope that Rihanna took note after this incident and hires a Muslim person for her team. Like I mentioned before, I think having people from every religion and background is the best way to avoid offending someone.