London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Did Childish Gambino call out cancel culture? The battle over the meaning of his tweets perfectly captures US’ cultural divide

Did Childish Gambino call out cancel culture? The battle over the meaning of his tweets perfectly captures US’ cultural divide

Donald Glover took to Twitter to seemingly blame cancel culture for the low quality of modern entertainment. Or did he? The debate about what he meant, with users seeing what they want to see in his words, sums up the culture war.

To say that Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino, has creative chops would be an understatement. He’s not only a Grammy Award-winning recording artist, but has acted in and written several incredibly successful shows and films, and raised laughs as a stand-up comedian – a true Renaissance man of the arts.

He’s also a very private individual, so when he went on Twitter and discussed the idea of the fear of cancelation being responsible for a lack of creativity in the arts, it came out of leftfield.




Glover’s remarks could be taken two different ways. The term “canceled” could, of course, be referring to cancel culture. He could be talking about the fear that every creative individual faces whenever it comes to creating something new. Speaking as a comic book writer, I would be lying if I told you there wasn’t a persistent hint of doubt in the back of my mind that a hate mob could come after me on social media for not expressing what I’m “supposed to” because of my skin color, religion, or any other number of arbitrary qualifiers.

The other possibility is that he was talking about a television program literally being canceled by a network. He’s currently the creator, writer, and executive producer of the show Atlanta, and plenty of TV creatives have gone on record saying it’s a constant worry for anyone who works in that area of the arts. Nobody wants to be the person who gets the phone call confirming their show will no longer exist next season, and they need to wrap it up.

I’m of the opinion that Glover was thinking more of the former than the latter, however. And it seems I’m not alone in that thought. Cassie da Costa recently penned an op-ed for Vanity Fair in which she discussed the idea of Glover referencing cancel culture.

That said, Da Costa disagreed with the suggestion that cancel culture is causing a lack of creative edge, and bolstered her argument by pointing out that Woody Allen, Mel Gibson, and Roman Polanski have all gone on to receive professional praise after potentially career-ending scandals. I can’t agree with that take, though, on the grounds that it’s odd to compare what the aforementioned individuals went through to losing a job purely because of the wrath of a social media mob. I think individual cases need to be examined on their own merits.

Ultimately, if Glover is indeed talking about cancel culture, then I agree with him 100%. The fact of the matter is that a culture that demands silence whenever the ‘wrong’ opinion is uttered will always stifle creativity. A creative mind relies on the ability to think freely. That mind must be able to explore different ideas and possibilities that go beyond skin color, sexual orientation, and any other mundanity, and those ideas might not always be palatable.

If we look at the world of TV for a moment, I wonder if a show like The Shield could even be made in this day and age. And would a comic book such as Watchmen be written? There are so many people out there who are fearful about what they can and cannot do that they simply stick to the safe options. Some of those safe areas, like superhero stories, can still be entertaining, but I have to confess that I find myself going back to older entertainment on a regular basis simply because, outside of that realm, there isn’t much. As Glover says, “They can only experiment with aesthetic.”

Beyond that, the row over his tweets is a perfect illustration of the gladiatorial, Twitter-acceptance-driven state of the current cultural world. Maybe even Glover himself is guilty of what he’s writing about – he’s “afraid of being canceled”, so he’s offering an ambiguous take that can be understood either way, dependent on the reaction.

I think Donald Glover will probably be enjoying the different interpretations of his statements. There’s a commonality between the two understandings: both acknowledge that fear ultimately curbs creativity. Then again, there could be a third option: he’s simply speaking his mind without an agenda. And if that’s the case, he might just be the only person on social media who’s doing so.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×