the "separate the art from the artist" and "i support them, not their actions" lines are just lazy. people throw those phrases around because they are desperate to avoid the reality that their favorites are genuinely shitty people who cause real world harm.
a person is not some abstract entity that exists apart from what they do. you cannot just pretend their toxic behavior is some optional accessory they can take off or ignore. when you are talking about things like misogyny, racism, sexism, grooming, violence, or dangerous political agendas and WORSE, there is no way to just partition that off. these are not accidental mistakes, they are the reality of who these people are. and for the record, "supporting them for years" is not an excuse. it is just proof that you have been conditioned to prioritize your own comfort and nostalgia over basic human decency.
it is insulting when people act all enlightened about looking at the work objectively when they are really just making excuses because they are not willing to stop consuming the content. the fact is, you cannot separate the art from the artist when the artist actively benefits from that art. every stream, every ticket, every piece of merch keeps them in a position of power and gives them the platform to continue the exact same patterns of harm. you are directly funding their ability to maintain their status, influence, and their platform for harmful political rhetoric, effectively ensuring that their behavior remains consequence free.
it is time to acknowledge that these public figures are not entitled to your loyalty. you are projecting a sense of personal connection onto a stranger who relies on your parasocial investment to maintain their lifestyle. they are not your responsibility, and they do not owe you anything. i promise they really don’t give a single fuck about you or your existence. yet, you are sacrificing your own moral integrity to shield them from accountability. if you are going to continue supporting someone despite their atrocities, you should at least have the honesty to admit that you are making a deliberate choice to prioritize that content over the wellbeing of the people they have harmed. stop hiding behind the pretense of sophistication. it is not nuance, it is simply a refusal to look at the reality of the situation.
