Trigger Warning
James Charles, one of the top YouTube content creators popular for makeup and beauty-related videos with 25.5 million subscribers. On April 1, Charles uploaded a video to his channel titled “holding myself accountable”. In the video, Charles admits he is responsible for engaging in sexual activity with underage boys over the internet. The video currently has over 7 million views and has been receiving a lot of attention considering this is the second time Charles has been involved in a scandal of sending explicit pictures and messages to minors.
Over the past month, numerous minors have been posting on Twitter about their interactions with Charles. They have been explaining the inappropriate actions that have taken place over their direct messaging. To divert attention away from the screenshots of direct messages, Charles has only fully admitted to three of the instances that took place on video, while not addressing all of the other allegations.
A lot of Charles’ fans and supporters are also disregarding the other accusations, claiming that those accusing him of his predatory behavior are using Charles as a way to gain followers or attention online. Although this could be true, Charles still needs to be held accountable for the crimes that he is owning up to.
To defend himself, Charles claimed that he was not aware of the true ages of the minors he was messaging. In his video, Charles explains that he has screenshots and proof that the individuals lied about their ages and said they were 18 years old when in reality they were underage, Charles stated. This can also be considered as a way to victim blame and not a way for Charles to hold himself accountable.
The biggest point Charles tries to make in his video is the concept of power imbalance. He mentions that before this was brought to his attention, he was not aware of the power he has over people who do not have a following as large as his. He now claims that he is aware of this power imbalance, that he is able to make this apology because he has a better understanding of what he is apologizing for and how he has hurt people.
There is an outstanding number of people who are supporting Charles in this situation considering his video has almost 300 thousand likes in comparison to having 200 thousand dislikes. Charles mentions in his video that he involved himself in this reckless behavior because he was desperate for a relationship. “I finally came to a conclusion, it sucks and it is ridiculously embarrassing to admit this but, I am desperate,” Charles said. It is easy to empathize with Charles in that sense, to understand where he’s coming from and it is easy to relate to the fear of being alone. However, what makes Charles’ situation more severe is that for the majority of the public, no matter how desperate someone is for a relationship, they don’t make the decision to exploit minors.
Many of those who have seen the video believe that his apology is sincere and people should forgive him because he can fully admit where he went wrong. Although Charles is seemingly taking accountability for his actions so they should be understood and forgiven, the apology should not be enough to put Charles in the clear given the severity of the incidents.
Negligence and ignorance cannot be used as a defense for Charles in the legal system of California. His main point that he was not aware of the ages of the minors he was messaging is insignificant and it does not excuse his actions. Describing himself as desperate means nothing when it comes to his predatory behavior toward children
As of now, the minors that have come forward to talk about their experiences are being harassed online by the fans of James Charles. This public conversation started by Charles contains numerous accounts of victim-blaming masked by the idea that taking accountability is happening whether he intended for this to be the outcome or not.
This backlash is setting a bad example for the fans of Charles who are choosing to harass his victims online. Their behavior makes it more difficult for other victims of this crime to come forward. They are seeing what the outcome of speaking out is, harassment for being abused by a famous influencer.
Whether or not Charles is truly a predator or someone who just made severe public mistakes is up for interpretation. However, by continuing to give Charles his platform and letting him get away with no consequences for his actions, YouTube is enabling the power imbalance of these popular creators.
YouTube has since made the decision to fire Charles from hosting season two of “Instant Influencer”, a YouTube show focusing on promoting upcoming influencers that Charles hosted the first season of. Charles could be temporarily removed from YouTube’s monetization program. These are good first steps on YouTube’s part in terms of making sure that actions have consequences and truly holding Charles accountable.
