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Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
As the wealth gap increases and millions of Americans suffer due to inflation and unemployment, many cast blame on the millionaires and billionaires that rule America’s top companies.
From Jeff Bezos to Elon Musk, the infamous “one percenters” are rightfully scorned for their exorbitant and extraordinary wealth. While the corporate tycoons that have made billions off the backs of the middle and lower classes are battered and mocked for their wealth, celebrities are often glorified and praised despite being able to be just as exploitative and criminal.
This week, Kim Kardashian, the star of the billion-dollar Kardashian empire, was fined over $1.26 million by the SEC for her deceptive promotion of the cryptocurrency Ethereum Max. Kardashian pushed the coin onto her 330 million Instagram followers but failed to disclose that she was paid $250,000 for the post.
The noteworthy reality star will face little blowback from the public for her criminal behavior. In the accumulation of her $1.8 billion net worth, Kardashian, who often speaks about criminal justice reform, has been the subject of employee-driven lawsuits alleging wage theft and retaliation. Despite her criminality and enormous build up of exploited wealth, most of her fans will still clamor for her posts and purchase all her overpriced products.
Kardashian isn’t an outlier – just about all of the Hollywood elite get a pass from the usual social justice warriors that attack big business, despite the similar moral and political pitfalls.
Star-studded brands dominate the multibillion-dollar cosmetics market, sometimes charging more than double their unaffiliated rivals for the same products. Some of the top names in the celebrity cosmetic market include Harry Styles, Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish and Kylie Jenner. The makeup industry is flush with allegations of forced labor and child labor, yet celebrities continue to pull in billions and establish new brands every year without a peep.
Celebrities frequently disregard their supposed principles on pertinent issues when it inconveniences them. Over the summer, many took to social media to call out the hundreds of short private jet rides of celebrities from the likes of Taylor Swift and Jay-Z.
Leonardo DiCaprio faced blowback after his routine cross-country private jet rides and his massive gas-guzzling yacht were exposed. DiCaprio has been one of the loudest voices in the push for climate justice, funding lawsuits and starring in films aimed at pushing reform – although his privilege and convenience are apparently more important.
Despite their hypocrisy being widely known, millions in a generation that cares more about climate than ever before will still rush to stream Swift’s newest album or DiCaprio’s latest film.
In contrast to the business moguls that control huge portions of the stock market, effectively forcing consumers to spend, celebrities are only empowered when fans buy in to their products. As teachers, nurses and laborers quietly work the underpaid jobs that fuel our nation’s productivity, celebrities flaunt their massive homes, hoard their millions and make inequalities worse.
For too long, out-of-touch celebrities have been accepted as the status quo, but it’s long overdue that we recognize their contribution to the issues we care about and demand they do more.
Rather than continue to be scammed by the manipulative rich people we brand as “celebrities,” we must stand up to their hypocrisy, stop buying their overpriced and exploitative products and demand they distribute more of their profits to their employees. Until that’s done, the celebrities are not the only hypocrites – so are we.
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