Nash Grier is a 16-year-old with 8.7 million followers on Vine who has become an internet sensation, and he recently received a movie deal with a fellow Vine star, Cameron Dallas. People hate Nash Grier because of homophobic remarks he made in a Vine clip back in April. In this clip, Grier makes fun of an HIV public service announcement and yells the word “fag” afterwards. Although he deleted this offensive clip, the popular YouTuber Tyler Oakley saved and posted this clip with a message criticizing Grier’s actions. This has spurred a number of people on Twitter and other social media, calling out Grier for the implications of his remark as well as some of his old tweets bashing gay rights. This has upset a lot of people who support equality for obvious reasons but also because he has so many subscribers. Not only is Grier in a position of authority because of this, but a large amount of his followers are young and impressionable.
Another reason why people are outraged by Nash Grier is because of the conflict his statement made in comparison to the persona Grier has created. He is known as a wholesome role model who has included his little sister in some of his Vines, frequently references the Bible on his Twitter account, and claims to never use profanity. Using such a strong slur against homosexuals certainly contradicts some of the values that Grier proclaims to have. Even though he posted a public apology on Twitter for the offensive clip, many people are unforgiving of his actions and continue to criticize the homophobic remarks he has made.