Careers shouldn’t be jeopardized over political correctness. This applies to liberals, too.
The reaction to Kathy Griffin’s now-infamous Trump beheading video was swift and almost universally condemning. CNN just announced that they would fire Griffin stating, “We have acted swiftly and decisively to demonstrate our commitment to a culture of decency, civility, and tolerance.”
Despite their obvious anti-Trump bias, CNN’s penchant for political correctness seems to have superseded its opposition to everything Trump. The executives at CNN clearly have no problem bashing Trump day in and day out (think pissgate) , but when the public cries “anti-PC behavior, ” CNN is quick to return to ideals of “decency, civility, and tolerance.”
The legality of the firing is not in question as the first amendment protects free speech only in the public forum. When it comes to the workplace, employers have the right to terminate employees according to private standards, which Griffin clearly violated. For a news outlet as PC conscious as CNN, it would be expected that they would fire Griffin outright, despite her shameless apology.
The alarming part of the blowback from this story is the lack of support for Griffin from free speech advocates. As a comedian, Griffin and others play a vital role in providing unfiltered social commentary that sometimes speaks truths that are too touchy for normal citizens to discuss openly. Now more than ever, it is important that we protect all Americans’ rights to express themselves as they please, no matter how tasteless it may sometimes be. Clearly Griffin’s joke was not very funny and quite graphic, but that does not mean that she does not have the right to put it forth. When Donald Trump won the presidential election in November, many touted it as a victory for free speech, and a sign that the voters think that PC culture has gone too far. But the same people who supported Trump as the anti-politically correct candidate are now condemning Griffin’s actions universally simply because it offended their beloved commander-in-chief.
Partisan outrage may cause Trump supporters to say that Griffin was inciting violence against the President of the United States. She did no such thing. Griffin simply made a bad joke with even worse execution (pun intended) . Obviously Trump did not intend to incite violence against women when he engaged in locker room talk with Billy Bush. He simply made a joke in poor taste, and apparently Americans got over it.
As our society descends further into pro-Trump vs. anti-Trump camps, it is important not to forget the principles that underpin our political leanings. Principles should determine your politics, not the other way around. That is why, in celebration of our free speech, I have created even more tasteless version of Griffin’s joke. It is my right to produce this content, and your right to either enjoy it, or be offended by it. God bless the United States of America.
***WARNING: GRAPHIC ANIMATED VIOLENCE***
