Oh Man…
This one really is a controversial topic but I think it is very important to discuss these things. Now if you didn’t know, I am part of the LGBT+ community, specifically the B (Bisexual). So for that reason, I understand why LGBT+ characters should be shown in kids TV shows. I would’ve felt so much more comfortable with the way I felt when I was younger knowing that there were other people, real or not, that felt the same as I did. But because it wasn’t normalized, it was pretty hard to accept.
“They’re kids, so most parents tend to shelter their kids from sexual activities until they’re an appropriate age that they’ll be able to dictate what they feel is sexually acceptable for them.”
“Children are the most impressionable and should not be taught that it is normal.”
When I started doing research into this topic, I found that a lot of people perceived being LGBT+ as sexual mature content. I don’t know if that makes sense but like people think that a gay person will somehow teach their kids the ins and outs of fucking someone of the same gender when all we’re trying to say is that it is okay to have an attraction to someone of the same-sex. Teaching your children that they can love/marry a boy or a girl does not equate to teaching sexual acts. Being gay is not synonymous with being sexual. I don’t understand how that is considered mature content and straight relationships on TV aren’t. I absolutely agree that children should not be exposed to sexual acts but rather taught about gender and sexuality at an APPROPRIATE age with APPROPRIATE terminology.
“While sexually explicit content has no place in media intended for children, I believe that romantic homosexual relationships should be portrayed as equal to heterosexual ones.”
“TV shows with gay/lesbian couples are helping children understand people, and what love truly is. It helps children understand that just like a princess and prince can live happily ever after, so can two princesses and two princes.”
I think there should be more LGBT+ characters in kids shows but it should be appropriate for their age. I feel like leaving out this representation builds ignorance and is often times harder to get them to understand that some people are part of the LGBT+ community. Also, some of the children watching will be LGBT+ and that kind of representation matters! Explaining earlier on will not make them gay, I spent years watching the same old straight representation in kids shows and that wasn’t enough to keep me straight sooooo yh. I personally think that LGBT+ characters should appear in TV shows watched by kids but not in any kind of sexual way. I want to see it exactly the way straight characters are represented.
“please STOP trying to take away their innocence so soon”.
I am also aware of the fact that LGBT+ content is against a lot of people’s religion and beliefs but my argument here is that there are a LOT of things on TV that go against people’s beliefs. Free speech is just as important in real life as it is in the media so if you don’t like it, watch something else. simple. Nobody is forcing you or you child to watch it. Word of warning, the more you hide topics like this from your kids, the more they’re gonna want to find out or they just sometimes grow up to be super ignorant because they haven’t been educated about it and that’s just facts sis. You can’t even be mad.
“But the point of having more LGBT characters in cartoons is to normalize it. To make it ordinary and every day, just like LGBT people are in real life.”
I feel like TV can teach acceptance and tolerance so when children and young adults do encounter someone who is unlike them, they aren’t immediately closed off to the opportunity to get to know them. I ran a poll on my instagram and twitter and the majority of people agreed that LGBT+ characters should be a part of kids TV shows.
Instagram: 65% voted YES & 35% voted NO
Twitter: 69% voted YES & 31% voted NO
This isn’t the most conclusive discussion, I just wanted to talk a bit about this and share some of my opinions. Let me know what you guys think . I’d really like to hear another reason against showing LGBT+ character other than ‘taking away innocence’.
Rachel Kyeremeh
Instagram: rachkyeremeh
Instagram: stripped____
twitter: @RachelBadu_!
As a straight male, it was seeing gay people on TV, like Ellen and Scott Thompson that first had me challenging misconceptions about lgbtq people. Earlier examples, even fictional, may have helped me question them sooner