Justin Bieber Smoked Weed in Colorado and Fans Went Wild
Los Angeles, United States-February 15, 2016: Justin Bieber during the 58th Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los Angeles
January was wild for Justin Bieber, or at least for his fans. Social networks have been overflowing with posts, comments and criticism! after the singer shared a photo of himself smoking from a bong. The photo was taken in Colorado, where marijuana has been legal for more than a decade now. In particular, people have heavily reacted to his post because last summer Bieber became a father. The question that lingered on: Is Justin Bieber a bad example for his followers, many of whom are young people, or is he simply enjoying his rights in a place where it’s completely legal to toke weed?
Justin Bieber’s Photo: Just Having Fun or Acting Irresponsible?
Justin Bieber posted a photo on his official Instagram account where he appears to be taking a hit from the bong, and this particular post quickly caught the attention of his millions of fans and followers. Many of them condemned his actions.
Even though the picture was taken in Colorado, where adult-use of marijuana has been regulated since 2014, it did not stop the avalanche of comments that overtook social media. People have been divided on the matter, and the hot pressing button has been the fact that Bieber became a parent just months ago.
Critics Say Bieber Was a Bad Example for His Fans
Most reactions were negative. People have questioned Justin Bieber’s behavior, with emphasis that he is now a father and smoking marijuana publicly was not okay. For many, the fact that Bieber is an influential public figure means that he has an extra responsibility to his fans, many of whom are young people.
Criticism has not only been focused on the use of marijuana itself, but also on how these types of posts could affect his fans’ perception of substance use. Is he normalizing potentially harmful behavior, or is he simply enjoying personal freedoms in a place where it’s completely legal and acceptable to smoke weed?
Let’s take a look at what exactly happened.
“The dude smokes more weed than taking care of his own kid,” went one of the comments, while another said: “This isn’t the best thing to do with a baby in the house.”
“Time to grow up and be a father and husband, no woman wants this for themselves,” a third person remarked.
“Dad of the year,” someone was ironic. “Jesus freed you from this bro, why are you going back to it,” was one of many remarks with a religious twist.
However, a lot of other fans went on to defend the pop star, saying that weed was safer than alcohol, among other things.
“Chill guys it’s WEED. Legal in Colorado. The equivalent of having a beer on vacation,” someone wrote.
Another one noted: “Anyone who thinks cannabis is bad, y’all are brainwashed. I wish I would’ve just stuck to weed instead of ever touching alcohol.”
“Omg, people, get a fucking grip. Most of you drink alcohol like it’s juice, not knowing what a poison it is for the body. You have no right to speak and condemn someone who chooses a better way of relaxing for their health,” a third comment went.
And just one more: “When snoop does it it’s cool but when beibs does it omg everyone loses their shit…”
Well, Justin Bieber’s post is still up there on Instagram and these comments definitely make for a solid scrollable material (try not to lose an hour on it)!
Bieber’s Controversy Says A Lot About What People Think About Marijuana
While some comments are just jaw-dropping, and also treating this as a moral, ethical and even racial problem, Bieber’s controversy still sheds light to a broader cultural context around marijuana. Fifteen or twenty years ago it would have been a complete taboo to talk about marijuana anyway. At best, any public figure seen smoking cannabis would have been unilaterally denounced. And in old Hollywood, you would have been arrested.
Now, besides all the bad talk seen recently, there’s a huge group of people who accepts cannabis as being a normal cultural thing, arguing that if done responsibly it should not be stigmatized, regardless if you are parent or not.
Probably both sides are right when they say that fatherhood shouldn’t mean giving up fun or personal choices, and also that being a public figure means more responsibility, especially when you have a large following who see you as a role model.
Nevertheless, the most curious thing with Bieber’s controversy is that a lot of celebrities have been seen and photographed smoking weed. But never has it become such a big issue. Being a young dad probably outweighs all other circumstances. It definitely has to do with stereotypical imaging as well. As one of the comments puts it, if this was a black person - a rapper with kids, and not a white male pop star - things would have probably been completely different.
All told, while things are much better than fifteen, twenty or thirty years ago in terms of cannabis acceptance, there’s still much to go to normalize it just like alcohol drinking for example. How different the reactions to Bieber’s post, a young VIP father, would have been if he was simply sipping whiskey?
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Stephen Andrews
