Cringe culture is defined by Urban Dictionary as “the culture of making fun of people and/or insulting them by calling them ‘cringe’ or ‘cringy’ for doing something which doesn’t harm or insult anyone nor anything.” It’s rather straightforward. It sounds like bullying, and that’s exactly what it is. Cringe culture is just another way for people to be cruel, so shouldn’t we treat it as something that should be stopped? At some point in our lives, we’ve all been made fun of for something we enjoy, but it’s something that no one should go through.

Take Minecraft, for example; originally released in 2009, the game died circa 2013 due to it suddenly being labeled as “cringy.” This title was given to the game namely due to its younger audience, as well as neurodivergent (someone with atypical neurological development) people’s enjoyment of it. The game has resurfaced as of late, but the fact that it died shows a major problem with cringe culture; it often goes after children and/or those who are mentally disabled. Children are generally regarded as an easy target for bullying and people who are neurodivergent have faced discrimination and ableism for decades. Bullying people weaker than you is not just a despicable and cowardly move, it’s also sadly common.

Not only are children and neurodivergent people harmed, but adults and neurotypicals can also be victims just as much as everyone else. It’s incredibly common to see adults shown as “weird” or “freaks” for having “childish” interests, such as comic books or kids’ TV shows. This is rude, just like hurting children or mentally handicapped people, and it should be stopped.

No matter who is being targeted, there’s one thing in common with all these “cringy” interests; they’re all harmless. You can think someone’s interest is strange, and you don’t need to understand it. But as long as that person’s interest doesn’t directly harm them or the people around them, there is no reason to bully them over it. If someone’s interest isn’t harmful, they should never, ever have to hide what they care about for fear of being insulted.

The real cringe is bullying.