There are plenty of media representations of the LGBT community in popular networks especially among the Disney Corporation as of late. And with the amount of coverage they get among their shows is not exactly appealing to all parties when it comes down to the sexuality of children that parents don't approve of. Now let me say I have no preference in this matter nor do I care too, it simply just a show and not my children. The parents on the other hand don't see it that way as they believe that the left-leaning "woke agenda" of media is shoving these ideals of sexuality and gender down their throats through the programs they produce.
Now an example of a Disney show that has had some backlash among parents is "The Owl House" in which two girls, ages 13-14, have been officially announced as a lesbian couple in the series about a human girl stuck in a realm of magic and demons. Now I've seen the show because of a younger sibling and I can say that they definitely make gender and sexuality a big topic in the series although mostly through subtle means. The show itself is well... a kids show, its okay but not my cup of tea, the creator Dana Terrace (apart of the LGBT community) had recently announced that the show was struck down and is planned to have a very short third season to quickly finish off the show after being told it did not fit the brand. Other examples in the show are the official terms and labels of characters such as the "non-binary" character Raine who is seen on the bottom right image. Raine is introduced as the shows first and possibly Disney's first non-binary character who has a relationship with one of the main protagonist Eda the Owl Lady. To be fair most of the outrage against Disney and shows such as these are from religious households that have a more traditional view, but the controversy still exist and therefore so does this post.
Many parents believe that the older version of Disney actually taught values in both their media and parks but is now promoting both innocence and sex at the same time which isn't something that can really be done in practice compared to theory. This type of representation is positive in the way that they want to move forward with it, but it has negative effects that is being associated with the "woke agenda" that is often regarded with issues surrounding marginalized communities such as the LGBT. Its not only the Disney corporations that parents are starting to boycott and rally against but it is also the businesses, schools and teachers that are under fire for pushing gender identities onto kids as young as kindergarten classes. Florida is a big activist in the agenda against such agendas by signing the 'Stop Woke Act' in which regulates how businesses and schools can address race and gender and restrict education about such topics. The law basically says it amounts to discrimination.
I personally do not think having characters on Disney who are apart of the LGBTQ+ community is a big deal. I think being able to see that it is normal thing at young age can help a child who may not understand something about them. Seeing their favorite TV show represent all sexualities can be beneficial to their overall mental health and well being. I mean I also do not have any children so I feel as though I cannot say too much because I am not a parent and I do not have a child who is watching these shows. I would say that If I was a parent right now, I personally would not mind. I would want my future child to be able to understand from a young age that they could be with however and they could be whoever.
ReplyDeleteJay Clarkson ended his article with "They seek to normalize gay men as 'real men,' but their strategy for confronting homophobia is limited to challenging the conflation of gender and sexuality, and does not seek acceptance for those whose degrees of transgression are higher. It does not challenge the fear or hatred of gayness" (Clarkson, page 344). I believe this applies to representation as a whole as well. When we hide ourselves whether in how we present in life or how we include LGBTQIA characters in television we do nothing to alleviate the persecution of LGBTQIA people and that includes queer children. The existence of queer people and children isn't really a political agenda liberal or conservative. We are just people that exist that some people don't like, those people paint us a political issue to discredit our right to representation and our right to exist. If we hide ourselves and let them keep us invisible we are authorizing their rhetoric that we shouldn't exist and that is dangerous to LGBTQIA children. When I was a kid I had Xena Warrior Princess to validate me. I knew she was a strong heroic bisexual who was with another strong heroic woman. They gave me hope and helped me feel normal when I was in a house with parents who were teaching me people like me should be dead. These stories of queer kids are FOR queer kids, not parents trying to harm them.
ReplyDeleteWorks Cited:
Clarkson, Jay. “The Limitations of the Discourse of Norms: Gay Visibility and Degrees of Transgression.” Introduction to Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Interdisciplinary and Intersectional Approaches, edited by Ayu Saraswati et al., 2nd ed., Oxford University Press, 2020, pp. 340–345.
I love The Owl House! It is definitely a kids show, however it includes examples of many different types of relationships and people. I will never understand how people are offended by seeing a 'non-straight' couple in a show or movie, but once it happens they say the show is 'shoving the gay agenda down their throats'. This is confusing to me as the amount of LGBT+ representation within the media, compared to the amount of heterosexual relationships/couples/whatever, is barely any. I also don't understand people's arguments of older Disney movies and their themes/messages, as many of the original/old Disney movies (Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White) all had messages/underlying themes that are not necessarily good for children to learn at a young age, however when show-makers put a gay character or couple in a show or movie it's a tragedy? I won't be able to understand than, but I am very thankful that representation of gay/LGBT+ characters have started to be more consistently shown and included.
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