If you still don’t think there are now at least two standards for “justice” in our country, consider American Idol finalist Caleb Kennedy.
That is, ex-American Idol finalist.
You see, Kennedy has now had to leave the show because of a three-second video in which he’s seated next to a child wearing a white hood “resembling Ku Klux Klan apparel.”
Not actual KKK wear, I’ll emphasize, but something resembling it.
Oh, the singer was reportedly 12 years old when the video was shot, too. Now his music career may be shot, all due to “cancel culture,” which many leftists swear doesn’t even exist.
They’re half right, too: It sure doesn’t exist for leftists. After all, liberal heads of state, comedians, and other prominent figures have been found to have done far “worse” than Kennedy but still have their jobs. It’s nice having a get-out-of-insanity-free card.
Kennedy, 16, announced his departure on Instagram Wednesday, writing:
Hey y’all, this is gonna be a bit of a surprise but I am no longer gonna be on American Idol. There was a video that surfaced on the internet and it displayed actions that were not meant to be taken in that way. I was younger and did not think about the actions, but that’s not an excuse. I wanna say sorry to all my fans and everyone who I have let down. I’ll be taking a little time off social media to better myself, but saying that, I know this has hurt and disappointed a lot of people and made people lose respect for me. I’m so sorry! I pray that I can one day regain your trust in who I am and have your respect! Thank you for supporting me.
Below is the “offending” video (warning: Blink and you may miss it).
Making this situation more ridiculous still, Kennedy’s mother, Anita Guy, says that the white hood isn’t even part of a KKK outfit.
“‘I hate [that] this has happened and how Caleb is being portrayed by people online,’ Guy said,” reports MSN. “‘This video was taken after Caleb had watched the movie ‘The Strangers: Prey at Night’ and they were imitating those characters. It had nothing to do with the Ku Klux Klan, but I know that’s how it looks. Caleb doesn’t have a racist bone in his body. He loves everyone and has friends of all races.’”
“This video was taken during the time ‘The Strangers: Prey at Night’ and ‘V for Vendetta’ were popular,” MSN continued. “Guy said Kennedy enjoyed both of these movies and even dressed up as the main character in ‘V for Vendetta’ for Halloween when he was in the 7th grade.”
Given the characters in the Strangers film (click here), Guy’s explanation is believable. But it doesn’t matter. The only really troubling aspect of the Kennedys behavior is that a 12-year-old was allowed to watch an R-rated movie. (Yes, I know that’s common today. No, that doesn’t make it right. Also lamentable is that with our society’s twisted moral compass, this truth is scoffed at by many.)
And more than troubling is the hypocrisy Kennedy’s canceling reflects. As one tweeter put it, “The contestant obviously lacked Democrat Party credentials.”
He wasn’t kidding, either: Below is a picture of Joe Biden holding hands with Senator Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), former grand kleagle of the Ku Klux Klan, at a campaign stop during the 2008 presidential race.
Then there’s Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, who has worn blackface on multiple occasions. One of them was captured in the picture below.
Next is a head of a state, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (image below); he’s either dressed in a KKK outfit or was standing next to someone dressed in a KKK outfit (an actual one).
Do note: They all appear somewhat older than 12. Also note that all still have their jobs.
We also have occasionally funny comedian Jimmy Kimmel, who years ago wore blackface; and TV talk show host Joy Behar, who also once darkened her skin.
For the record, I don’t think any person’s career should be destroyed over such nonsense. But anyone who thinks aspiring teens should be held to a higher standard than powerful politicians is, frankly, a bad person. Apparently, though, as with laws, inane and tyrannical social codes are only for the little people.
And what’s next? Canceling an infant because he makes what looks like a white power symbol while fiddling with his fingers?
Cancel culture would be laughable were it not so dangerous. It’s a wholly impure Puritanism about which could be said, quoting C.K. Chesterton on actual Puritanism, is the “pouring of righteous indignation into the wrong things.” Except that the indignation is quite situational and is being poured into the darkest of things.
Correction: This article originally identified the picture of Joe Biden and Robert Byrd as being from 2019. Senator Byrd passed away in 2010. The picture in question was from an October 24 rally in Charleston, West Virginia, during the 2008 presidential campaign. The article has been corrected to reflect this.
