Can there be a gay character in a children's show?
- Thread starter Sam_Winchester
- Start date
Not a problem, in my opinion. I don't think it's something kids would really notice or think about, anyway. One example would be Tinky-Winky from the Teletubbies - purple, triangle, purse.
...you cannot seriously be asking this question. It's either going to be a) unimportant, as sexual orientation is really not that big of a deal no matter which way you swing, or b) very important for developing the child's understanding of sexuality. Both of which point to yes - there can be. And there is no reason why there shouldn't be.
It could easily be done without referencing sex itself. I mean, how many kids' shows have married characters? Do those characters frequently talk about sex? It'd be pretty easy to have gay characters without directly talking about sex or sexuality. It's just one aspect of a person, and it should be presented as such.
What you're saying is quite a double-standard. What about growing up with the assumption that you're straight and then meeting the confusion over being attracted to the same sex?Alterego-X said:
What's the harm in just showing kids that there are gay people and, contrary to what many parents might teach them, it's not a bad thing. Hell, I'm sure just the concept of "a boy can have a boyfriend" or "a girl can have a girlfriend" would alleviate a LOT of confusion for people questioning their sexuality.
I think they should be able to but in a children show you really probably shouldn't be flaunting any sexuality.
Probably more than 90% of people are straight.
If someone will be left confused either ways, at least it should be minimized.
And for the next decades, and probably centuries, no matter how tolerant and open-minded we will become, straightness will always be seen as the "default", solely for being the majority. This is not something that we should dayream about ereasing, but thinking about how to minimize it's negative effect on those who happen to be gay.
If someone will be left confused either ways, at least it should be minimized.
And for the next decades, and probably centuries, no matter how tolerant and open-minded we will become, straightness will always be seen as the "default", solely for being the majority. This is not something that we should dayream about ereasing, but thinking about how to minimize it's negative effect on those who happen to be gay.
I know there is a very camp peacock villain, in a cartoon my nephew watches, about a super cat.
He asked me if the peacock was gay and I said he just might be effeminate but it was possible and there is nothing wrong with that.
I think there are already gay 'stereotypes' in kids shows but then a lot of characters in cartoons are exaggerated stereotypes.
I know Lauren Faust answered a critic who said that Rainbow Dash stereotyped lesbians by saying at no point has her sexual leanings been revealed. So it was really the critic that was stereotyping.
He asked me if the peacock was gay and I said he just might be effeminate but it was possible and there is nothing wrong with that.
I think there are already gay 'stereotypes' in kids shows but then a lot of characters in cartoons are exaggerated stereotypes.
I know Lauren Faust answered a critic who said that Rainbow Dash stereotyped lesbians by saying at no point has her sexual leanings been revealed. So it was really the critic that was stereotyping.
I also think establishing this acceptance at a young age would avoid the sometimes tragic bullying that goes on in many secondary schools.Sporky111 said:
Frickin hell had to delete everything I just wrote up due to how annoyed I was getting because this is just ridiculous, its so annoying that you can have a character in a show obviously displaying their sexuality... for example any character in a show who has a crush on or is with someone of the opposite sex and no one thinks you're showing sexuality to kids or shoving it down their throat. Mention having any kind of a gay character in a show (which there are) and suddenly that's shoving sexuality down kids throats. So stupid I might just go hit my head against a wall right now.
So many people in this thread are confusing homosexuality with sex. They just don't realize it.
Just so you know, when you say "we shouldn't bring sexuality into a kid life till they're older" you do realize we'd have to include heterosexuality right? So no married couples (not even parents), no crushes, no high school relationships. all of those things are showing heterosexuality. The only difference between heterosexuality and homosexuality is the gender of the people involved, get that into your head.
You might think you're being accepting, but you've still got a chip to fill in.
Just so you know, when you say "we shouldn't bring sexuality into a kid life till they're older" you do realize we'd have to include heterosexuality right? So no married couples (not even parents), no crushes, no high school relationships. all of those things are showing heterosexuality. The only difference between heterosexuality and homosexuality is the gender of the people involved, get that into your head.
You might think you're being accepting, but you've still got a chip to fill in.
Children, despite not being sexually-aggressive/active until puberty, still take in information about their surroundings. They are not oblivious to romantic love and the plethora of ways it is displayed. Point being: not displaying it won't make children ignorant about 'love'. Also, there's no "corruption of children's minds" by telling them what sex is. That's crazy.
Anywho, I propose there are more gay characters in children's TV than in the actual population (as a function of % of characters) already.
EDIT: Obviously/openly gay characters, that is.
Anywho, I propose there are more gay characters in children's TV than in the actual population (as a function of % of characters) already.
EDIT: Obviously/openly gay characters, that is.
In childrens shows you don't get heterosexual characters going militant about their sexuality, so if it were a homosexual character they'd act just the same as the heterosexual characters. You don't really get relationships in childrens shows, not any I ever saw anyway.
At risk of using it as a point in yet another debate, I'd like to refer you all to that latest and greatest of children's television programs:
[img src=http://arch.413chan.net/steven_magnet-(n1302839788866).png width="300"][/center]
Signs point to "Yes".
[img src=http://arch.413chan.net/steven_magnet-(n1302839788866).png width="300"][/center]
Signs point to "Yes".
I reckon we
OT: There's really no difficulty in having homosexuals in kids shows and it should be something to happen soon, that said I can imagine it will take a while before it happens simply because parents will be scared their children will somehow become gay.
Having two male characters hold hands, live together, and call each other 'honey' isn't sex and that's pretty much the way sexuality is explained in kids shows.somonels said:
OT: There's really no difficulty in having homosexuals in kids shows and it should be something to happen soon, that said I can imagine it will take a while before it happens simply because parents will be scared their children will somehow become gay.
As long as it was handled with a little delicacy, I don't see why not. (Well, I do see why not- screaming howls of outrage from religious conservatives- but I don't see why it shouldn't be possible to do so in a way that wouldn't create a problem for most everyone else.)
