Ariel Winter Lashes Out At ‘Homophobe’ Nash Grier: Why She Should Apologize

Ariel Winter and Nash Grier recently got into a verbal tiff over the Vine star’s admittedly homophobic slurs from four years ago. Grier has since apologized for the things he said back then, but Winter was having none of it, using her status as a television star to shame Grier publicly.

The issue began on Sunday when she responded to Grier’s request for fans to post their favorite videos from him over the years.

Ariel Winter saw an opportunity.

#FavNashVid that one time when he was just super homophobic and ignorant? #whydoyouhavefans

— Ariel Winter (@arielwinter1) January 10, 2016

But this being Twitter and 140 characters not being nearly enough to say everything that she wanted to Grier, the Modern Family star followed it up with a lengthier diatribe.

In response to @Nashgrier from my last post… pic.twitter.com/aV8bRYYOa1

— Ariel Winter (@arielwinter1) January 10, 2016

While it is understandable that Winter would have a lot of negative feelings toward Grier, the problem with her argument is that she is taking a teenage boy to task for something that he did four years ago — when he was just 14 — and has since apologized for.

What she is engaging in is a form of cyberbullying that refuses to allow for the personal growth of another human being, and it’s one of the nastiest things about the internet.

When you do something stupid online — the Nash Grier video below is unquestionably stupid — you are somehow defined by it even if it’s 5, 10, or 20 years later.

There will always be people calling you an “a**hole” or a “homophobe” or any number of unflattering names. It’s a practice that constantly devalues one’s humanity, and Ariel Winter is completely guilty of giving in to it.

Here’s the thing. A lot about a person’s life and views can change in four years, especially when that person is a teenager.

https://youtu.be/CB4ufWAa9Lc

To back up that point, this article will now turn to a little thing called science.

As the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) reports, “the brain doesn’t look like that of an adult until the early 20s.” The agency adds that “the parts of the brain involved in keeping emotional, impulsive responses in check are still reaching maturity” and that such a changing balance “might provide clues to a youthful appetite for novelty, and a tendency to act on impulse — without regard for risk.”

Like risking your perceived humanity on a stupid online video at 14-years-old.

In fact, Jay Giedd, the Chief of Brain Imagery at the Child Psychiatry Branch of NIMH, recently conducted a study in which he confirmed the widely accepted scientific principle that the human brain is largely under construction until the age of 25.

What’s worse, the risk-taking part of the brain is usually much more vulnerable in teen boys than it is in teen girls, and beliefs can be shaped by one’s friends, family, the things they consume in pop culture and situational circumstances.

When Nash Grier made that video, he was definitely “under construction,” but Ariel Winter is seeking to crucify him for it years later, and her influence is likely to have an effect for some time to come.

It’s this form of cyberbullying that Ariel Winter is engaged in that paints politically correct culture and “social justice warriors,” as Joe Rogan refers to them, in a negative light.

People are sick and tired of recreational outrage and being judged by others over one sliver of their lives, and it’s resulting in a backlash felt across the country. It’s even a big part of Donald Trump’s campaign and could be what ends up putting him in the White House.

For these reasons, Ariel Winter should think about apologizing to Grier and to other cyberbullying victims.

But what do you think, readers? Did Ariel Winter go too far, or was she justified in attacking an 18-year-old for something foolish he said at 14? Sound off in the comments section.

[Image via Featureflash / Shutterstock.com]