Cancel Culture and Canceling versus consequences for actions

LOL, what are you even talking about? I have another thread which details over 300 times times the Right has had a Culture War shitfit over one thing or another, with well over 100 examples of the Right trying to “cancel” something or someone they didn’t like.

Remember when they whined about Taylor Swift? Or Gillette? Or the Dixie Chicks? Or anyone who opposes the 2nd Amendment? Hell, the Right spent years trying to cancel Jane Fonda, as much a non-entity as Jimmy Kimmel. Anita Bryant made a career, and millions of dollars, trying to cancel gay people. And the 20-year war fought against Hillary Clinton was a textbook example of cancel culture long before “CC” became a phrase in itself.

Here’s the list… which I haven’t updated since August of 2024, because wow, y’all really went into overdrive… to remind you of some of the past two centuries of the Right trying to cancel one thing or another.

Number Item Year (appx) Link
1 People being ineffective is OK as long as it is a white man. For example, Bush 2. Trump. 1789
2 Immigrants will make America “Poorer and dirtier” 1844
3 Communism/Socialism (“Red Scares”) 1919 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Scare
4 “Tax and Spend Democrats” 1932 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_and_spend
5 Movie X is inciting violence/sex/drugs 1934 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hays_Code
6 Liberal Media 1944 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/01/the-conservative-war-on-liberal-media-has-a-long-history/283149/
7 War against Universal Healthcare 1948 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_health_care_reform_in_the_United_States
8 Music X is inciting violence/sex/drugs 1955 http://20thcenturyhistorysongbook.com/song-book/the-fifties/criticism-of-the-devils-music-rock-roll/
9 Islamophobia 1959 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamophobia_in_the_United_States
10 Sovereign Citizens 1971 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_citizen_movement#History
11 Jane Fonda 1972 https://www.thelily.com/how-jane-fondas-1972-trip-to-north-vietnam-earned-her-the-nickname-hanoi-jane/#
12 Snail Darter Controversy 1973 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snail_darter_controversy
13 Gun fetishism 1974 https://www.hamptonthink.org/read/americas-gun-fetish-is-a-symptom-of-a-deeper-sickness
14 Supply-Side Economics 1974 https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1439217
15 Anita Bryant’s crusade against gays 1975 https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/1970s-christian-crusader-anita-bryant-helped-spawn-floridas-lgbtq-cult-rcna24215
16 AIDS 1981 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV/AIDS
17 Backmasking music - play songs backwards, get exposed to Satan 1982 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backmasking
18 Constant misuse of “Born in the USA” 1984 https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/06/bruce-springsteen-ronald-reagan-107448/
19 USPS must be profitable! 1985 https://www.npr.org/2020/08/16/902977021/the-history-of-political-interference-in-the-usps
20 Political Correctness 1987 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_correctness#History
21 “Hey ho, hey ho, Western Civ has got to go!” 1988 https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/19/us/in-dispute-on-bias-stanford-is-likely-to-alter-western-culture-program.html
22 Willie Horton 1988 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Horton
23 Central Park Five 1989 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Park_jogger_case
24 Flag Burning Controversies 1989 https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/when-the-supreme-court-ruled-to-allow-american-flag-burning#
25 Spotted Owl Controversy 1989 https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=20000806&slug=4035697
26 War on Christmas 1990 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_controversies#United_States
27 Gay Day @ Disney 1991 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_Days_at_Walt_Disney_World
28 Hillary Clinton (really, a list of her own) 1992 https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/hillary012898.htm
29 Ebonics 1996 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebonics_(word)
30 Ellen Degeneres 1997 https://www.biography.com/movies-tv/ellen-degeneres-sitcom-coming-out-episode
31 A Hurricane will strike Disney - Pat Roberston 1998 https://www.pilotonline.com/1998/06/12/pat-robertson-is-blowing-a-lot-of-hot-air/
32 Mozart CD’s being given to newborns in GA (Limbaugh, especially) 1999 https://www.nytimes.com/1999/08/03/science/mozart-for-baby-some-say-maybe-not.html
33 Starbucks Christmas 1999 https://www.eater.com/2015/11/10/9705570/starbucks-holiday-red-cups-controversy-history
34 Teletubbies are gay 1999 https://www.nytimes.com/1999/02/11/us/national-news-briefs-falwell-sees-gay-in-a-teletubby.html
35 Anti-LGBTQ 2000 https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/anti-lgbtq-rhetoric-plays-prominent-role-first-night-rnc-rcna162028
36 Book bans 2000 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/12/books/book-bans-libraries.html
37 Border Security 2000 https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/republicans-kill-border-bill-sign-trumps-strength-mcconnells-waning-in-rcna137477
38 Elian Gonzalez 2000 https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/elian/etc/eliancron.html
39 Laura Bush kills a guy, but it’s OK. 2000 https://abcnews.go.com/WN/Politics/laura-bushs-book-talks-fatal-teenage-car-crash/story?id=10502401
40 The War on Terror 2001 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_terror
41 French Fries (Freedom Fries) 2002 https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/ny-news-freedom-fries-iraq-war-20190211-story.html
42 Paul Wellstone’s Funeral 2002 https://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/10/17/history-rick-kahn-turns-memorial-into-political-rally
43 Shoe inspections on airplanes 2002 http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/12/24/rec.athome.facts/index.html
44 Stem Cells 2002 https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/the-stem-cell-controversy
45 Boycotting Heinz Ketchup because of John Kerry’s wife. 2004 https://www.courant.com/2004/08/17/political-food-fight/
46 Gay Marriage 2004 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5665159/
47 John Kerry’s wife is a foreigner and can’t be First Lady 2004 https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/09/27/the-candidates-wife
48 Swift Boat Veterans for Truth 2004 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swift_Vets_and_POWs_for_Truth
49 Ted Koppel read names of Iraqi war dead on Nightline (2004), implying war wasn’t going well. 2004 https://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/TV/05/01/abc.nightline/
50 “I have a wide stance!” (Larry Craig, Republican, arrested for gay sex acts in bathroom) 2005 https://www.foxnews.com/story/larry-craigs-wide-stance-excuse-gains-prominence-in-lexicon
51 Michael Moore’s *Bowling for Columbine* 2005 https://www.sfu.ca/~mauser/papers/columbine/Columbine4-12-02.pdf
52 Obama Katrina 01: Katrina (2005) 2005 https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/clarence-page/ct-perspec-page-obama-katrina-trump-20170901-story.html
53 Participation Trophies 2005 https://www.bctrophies.com/The-Participation-Trophy-Debate-Should-We-Give-Our-Kids-Participation-Trophies_b_6.html
54 Duke Lacrosse scandal 2006 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_lacrosse_case
55 Janet’s Boob 2006 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XXXVIII_halftime_show_controversy
56 Terri Schiavo 2006 https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/look-back-in-history-terri-schiavo-death/
57 Michael Moore’s *F 9/11* 2007 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_9/11_controversies
58 “Elitist” Obama mentioning aurugula to a bunch of Iowan farmers who planted…. Aurugula. 2008 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/obama-eats-arugula_b_106166
59 Joe the Plumber 2008 https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/whatever-happened-to-joe-the-plumber
60 Moochelle Obama (Rush Limbaugh name for her) 2008 https://www.businessinsider.com/presidential-medal-awardee-rush-limbaughs-racist-and-sexist-comments-2020-2
61 Obama and Tire Pressure as an energy saver. Right freaked out about Obama repeating a fact found in those little yellow handouts given by Shell back in the 1970s. 2008 https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2008/08/08/2003419730
62 Obama golfing 2008 https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/22/us/politics/a-terrorist-horror-then-golf-incongruity-fuels-obama-critics.html
63 The 2008 Obama terrorist fistbump with Michelle 2008 https://www.theguardian.com/media/2008/jun/13/television.barackobama
64 The Ohio State Flag is mistaken for an Obama flag 2008 https://washingtonmonthly.com/2008/10/17/ohios-state-flag-is-not-obamas-fault/
65 The Sarah Palin Experience. All of it. 2008 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sarah-Heath-Palin
66 ACORN 2009 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACORN_2009_undercover_videos_controversy
67 Gender-Neutral Restrooms 2009 https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/whos-afraid-of-same-sex-bathrooms
68 Michelle Bachman 2009 https://www.salon.com/2015/01/05/farewell_to_americas_favorite_wingnut_remembering_michele_bachmanns_greatest_hits/
69 Michelle Obama is a man 2009 https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2023/feb/28/facebook-posts/michelle-obama-was-never-man/
70 Obama “Underwear Bomber” controversy 2009 https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/30/us/politics/30baker.html
71 Obama bowed! 2009 https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna33978533
72 Obama Katrina 03: The 2009 Swine Flu epidemic 2009 https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/03/160_50722.html?utm_source=CU
73 Obama’s Mustard 2009 https://www.newsweek.com/barack-obama-donald-trump-russia-investigation-dijon-mustard-scandal-fox-fake-623643
74 “Sharia Law is coming!” 2010 https://www.biblio.com/book/go-zones-how-sharia-law-coming/d/1532244614
75 Common Core 2010 https://www.verywellfamily.com/causes-of-common-core-controversy-2601484
76 Ground Zero Mosque 2010 https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/08/how-the-ground-zero-mosque-meltdown-set-the-table-for-trump
77 HPV vaccine 2010 https://www.npr.org/2011/09/19/140543977/hpv-vaccine-the-science-behind-the-controversy
78 Obama Katrina 04: The Haiti Earthquake of 2010 2010 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703808904575025091656446622
79 Obama Katrina 05: Ebola! 2010 https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-echochambers-29663837
80 Obama Katrina 06: Unaccompanied Children at the Border! 2010 https://newrepublic.com/article/118591/child-migrant-border-crisis-isnt-obamas-katrina-not-even-close
81 Obama Katrina 09: BP Oil Spill 2010 https://www.today.com/id/wbna38907780#.UoZFPpRgY44
82 Tea Party 2010 https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/28/us/politics/tea-party-trump.html
83 Birth Certificate 2011 https://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2016-37391652
84 Obama Katrina 07: MF Global problems 2011 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mf-global-ties-awkward-for-obama-campaign/2011/11/02/gIQA9w5ogM_story.html
85 Obama Katrina 07: Obamacare Website Problems 2011 https://www.nationaljournal.com/s/66235/why-obamacare-may-be-obamas-katrina-iraq/
86 Obama Katrina 08: Mississippi River floods 2011 https://time.com/4464474/louisiana-governor-flooding-president-obama-alton-sterling/
87 Obama used a teleprompter! 2011 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/republicans-mock-obamas-teleprompter-use/2011/10/18/gIQA6hEivL_story.html
88 “You didn’t build that” 2012 https://www.factcheck.org/2012/07/you-didnt-build-that-uncut-and-unedited/
89 Benghazi 2012 https://www.vox.com/2018/11/20/17996104/benghazi-attack-clinton-obama
90 Crisis Actors 2012 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/feb/21/crisis-actors-deep-state-false-flag-the-rise-of-conspiracy-theory-code-words
91 Keystone Pipeline 2012 https://www.nrdc.org/stories/what-keystone-xl-pipeline
92 Obama Katrina 10: Hurricane Sandy 2012 https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-friends/media-consecrate-their-latest-obamas-katrina-unaccompanied-minors-edition
93 Obama Katrina 11: Hurricane Isaac 2012 https://newrepublic.com/article/136182/obamas-katrina-never-sticks-wont-die
94 Obama’s plan to wind down AFG coincided with election 2012 https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2012/01/23/obamas-oops-in-afghanistan/
95 Operation Fast and Furious 2012 https://www.nationalreview.com/2016/01/fast-furious-obama-first-scandal/
96 Polls oversample democrats 2012 https://hughhewitt.com/quinnipiac-pollings-peter-brown-tries-to-defend-oversampling-democrats-in-new-battleground-state-polls/
97 Austerity (Debt Ceiling debate 2013) 2013 https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/its-groundhog-day-over-the-debt-ceiling/
98 Comicsgate 2013 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comicsgate
99 Gamergate 2013 https://time.com/3510381/gamergate-faq/
100 Government shutdown: 2013 2013 https://www.texastribune.org/2016/02/16/ted-cruz-2013-obamacare-shutdown-was-defining-mome/

As I said, the list isn’t specifically about “cancellation”, but for God’s sake, at least admit that the Right tried to cancel the NFL because one guy took a knee during the national anthem… and they did cancel his NFL career.

ETA: Apparently there’s now a character limit on posts, so the first 100 is displayed only…