Conservative Canadian journalist and independent filmmaker Lauren Southern announced on Monday that she plans to retire from public life and pursue a more private existence.
Southern, at just 23, has covered stories around the world and recently released a documentary on immigration, “Borderless,” that was immediately censored by YouTube.
“I’ve enjoyed this all greatly but it’s time to start a new chapter of my life,” Southern tweeted, linking to a longer explanation on her website.
Farewell ❤️
I’ve enjoyed this all greatly but it’s time to start a new chapter of my life. Thank you to all my incredible colleagues who I’ll be cheering on in their fight for truth – and my wonderful supporters who made all I’ve done possible.https://t.co/iK4tu4gGw0
— Lauren Southern (@Lauren_Southern) June 3, 2019
Making a Change
Southern said that she has wanted to pull back from social media and public work for a while, but felt a duty to make a difference. She said she plans to go back to school and may return to political work in a more private way at some point.
“Who knows? Maybe you’ll read my name on papers, in journals, or as a byline in articles. The story of my political career may have more chapters one day,” Southern wrote, but said they would be different than the “televised firebrand” people were used to.
She stated that her personal life, friendships, relationships, and self-growth have all improved as she began to step away from social media more in the last year. “I’m more than happy to sacrifice my small little piece of ‘fame’ or ‘notoriety’ to continue to grow myself as a person,” she continued, noting that she wanted to focus more on her family and her soul.
“There are many different roles to be played in the fight for a better, more truthful world,” Southern recognized, and stated that she may seek out one of those roles in a more behind-the-scenes capacity.
No regrets
Southern said she doesn’t regret her work, which helped to expose injustices like farm killings in South Africa and illegal activities by NGOs to traffic migrants into Europe, but also got her branded as alt-right in some instances. Southern denies the alt-right label.
Southern also ran as a Libertarian Party candidate in Canada’s federal election in 2015 and covered the Paris riots. She said that she greatly enjoyed getting to see the world and hear people’s stories, many of which she has not shared publicly.
Like nearly all conservatives, Southern’s time in the public eye also gained her many detractors, some of whom responded to her announcement with jeers and “So what?” sentiments. She acknowledged that social media could become an addiction and could distort a person’s view of life and society.
It takes a great deal of maturity to realize at the age of 23 and with a large social media following that you want your life to go in a different direction. It takes a great deal of courage to make the decisions needed to follow a different path.
The public may not be privvy to Southern’s continuing evolution, but we expect we probably haven’t seen the last from her.
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