Poll: Should There be Gay Characters in Kid's Shows/Films?

[Rayne870]

While a kids show isn't going to have any sexual themes or anything in it it is impossible to say that they don't delve into relationships at all. It's not necessary but it would be nice to see acknowledgment since it does indeed exist.

If that doesn't do it I'll have to modify my original plan for raising my kids. I was going to have one of every book relating to each major religion and some interesting minor ones, but I see now I may need to add stacks of gay and lesbian porn in with regular porn as well as other non pornographic reading materials that discuss homosexuality. Hopefully this doesn't offend anyone but that essentially is my plan. Provide everything and let my kids choose and love them conditionally. I would say unconditionally but if they go digging up bodies or hanging out at playgrounds with their hands in their pants or something like that they will be disowned, I have to draw the line somewhere.

Gah! so much to worry about with kids.

 

[Mullahgrrl]

Spongebobs not gay, he dates the ladies. Patrick and Spongebob are just best friends they say it all the time.

edit: also Bert and Ernie are just best friends they even sleep in separate beds, peppermint patty loves charlie brown, He-man is really a young boy made to look like that through the power of greyskull, the cross dressing lobster-devil may just be a transvestite, and Stewies not gay he's bi-sexual, and whatever you call someone that wants to have sex with dogs.

Ok, how about every single male Disney villain exept for that guy in Mulan?

 

[Cazza]

Okay how many of you that are okay with homosexual relationships are okay with transvestites relationships in kid shows? I think it's okay as long as you don't overwhelm kids with it. I believe any sexual relationship could confuse or make them ask question the parents aren't ready to deal with. (Im think really young kids here.) As they get older then I would start to teach them about sexual relationships.

 

[Defenestra]

Homosexuality is present in reality. In sane, safe parts of reality.

Kids can grow up just fine with two parents of the same sex, and if one or two kids in some children's show have two moms or two dads, that's enough to show the concept without ramming it down anyone's throat or having main characters tongue-wrestling.

It shouldn't be a focus. It doesn't need to be shouted from the rooftops or reiterated before the closing credits in ways that I found annoying and insulting even as a child. Yes, I know Astro Boy wouldn't have had to beat up that hundred-ton mechanical dinosaur if one or two people had just stopped being such complete dicks. You don't need to waste minutes that could have been used for more giant robot brawling on telling me it again.

But it should be there.

 

[Kris015]

No. I'm not homophobic or anything, I just don't think kids are ready for things like that. Hell, they don't even know what sex is!

Just my oppinion.

 

[Scout Tactical]

Kid's shows shouldn't have any time of sexual emphasis at all, straight or homosexual.

Ridiculous.

 

[jackpipsam]

I don't see why not!

 

[Aureliano]

What? They have kids shows WITHOUT gay characters in them now?! I have got to check this crap out.

Oh, wait. You're one of those people who thinks Bert does not have a distended anus. Nevermind.

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

I don't think kid's shows should have any type of sexual connotations.

Who said anything about sexual?

Introduce two gay men who love each other. How is that different than a man and a woman who love each other? Kids shows don't go into details about what happens between the man and the woman, so why would they with the two men?

Being gay isn't ONLY about sex. It's about relationships. And kids learn about relationships at a very young age (from their parents, guardians, or whatever).

Well I mean if you want to be that ambiguous with it, then you could probably consider Spongebob and Patrick "gay." When it gets down to the nitty gritty, sexual orientation is pretty much all about sex, otherwise there's nothing to really distinguish it from strong friendship, especially in kids shows where male characters hugging is fairly common anyways. Other than mom/dad characters, it's very hard to portray a "loving" relationship in a kids show without getting into that territory, so aside from giving a kid two dads or something and never directly identifying them as "gay," there's not really a good way to go about that.

I would say a kids show isn't really the place for any display or even confirmation of sexuality because that's not really an issue that its target demographic has to deal with. This isn't to say that they can't do it and still get away with a G rating, I'm just saying that kids don't usually appreciate or even necessarily fully understand the concept yet, so it's neither entertaining nor beneficial to them to be pushing either side.

 

[Atticus89]

I doubt we'll be seeing Dora the Explorer talking to a gay 5 year old, though I don't see anything wrong with shows that would probably be for older kids.

The best way to do it is to make the character something more than just "the gay character" of the show. Nothing overly flamboyant or stereotypical.

Right now, I doubt we'll see anything like this. Maybe later on down the road in about 10 years or so.

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I don't think kid's shows should have any type of sexual connotations.

Pretty much the nail on the head as far as I'm concerned.

Why should kids shows address sexuality one way or the other? They don't really know or care about the subject, they just want something funny/exciting.

Pretty much this. Why even bring it up.

 

[StoneCutter]

I'm all for promoting equality and everything, I'm just not convinced that kids will understand the issue here. Until someone turns 12, do they really understand what it means to be gay? Do they even recognize the problem of discrimination? I can't remember any kid that thought differently about one race in comparison to another.
Kids will be far more concerned about the super-squad's super-spaceship then they will about discrimination, simply because it's not a factor in their lives. And introducing that subject will just be an episode or character that the audience doesn't understand, and will take away from their interest in the show.
Maybe when kids get into their teens will relationships and the subject of homo/heterosexuality will make sense to them. At that point I would say it would be a good idea to introduce it.

TL/DR
No point, kids won't understand.

 

[Vuljatar]

There is no reason to exclude gay characters from kids shows. When they do appear, however, them being "gay" should not be their main characteristic. They also shouldn't be shoe-horned in for the sake of the show having a "token gay".

 

[Kilyle]

One of the things that bugs me about this issue... tangentially... is that the "acceptance" of gays seems to go hand in hand with the rejection of intimate non-sexual relationships.

I mean, nowadays it seems impossible to picture two unrelated adult males who are on intimate terms and who love each other without also assuming that they're sexually active with each other. This leads to cultural misreadings of relationships from previous eras; for example, the love of David and Jonathan was said to be "closer than the love between a man and a woman" and people read that to mean "oh man were they having awesome sex."

Maybe it's the language. English is pretty poor for discussing love, since we use the same term to love your wife, your best friend, your pizza, your car, and your hamster. Seriously, no wonder we get so mixed up on the subject.

Anyway, I'd be a little happier accepting gay characters in shows (expecting parents to talk with their kids about their own moral stance, as parents should) if you could show two male characters being intimate and loving without bringing in the baggage of "oh man they are so totally gay." (Bert and Ernie's on the "slap slap kiss" side of that argument: What does it take to convince people that two guys are NOT doing it, and why should we have to try so hard in the first place? It's a puppet show, for cryin' out loud!)

 

[CaptVickHartnell]

Yes, but they should definitely NOT be a big issue in those shows. They should just be there and all the other characters, and by extension the audience, just accept it and get on with it, without making a big deal out of it. THAT is what will foster equality and acceptance.

 

[ADDLibrarian]

Heck, we've already had a gay couple on one of the most popular children's shows of all: Sesame Street. Ernie and Bert? Anyone? Am I right?

Ok, but seriously.

I wouldn't mind seeing gay characters in children's shows.
Check out the children's book "Tango Makes Three" It's based on a true story about two male
penguins who adopt a baby chick.

 

[Tanfastic]

No, I don't think that kid shows should show any sexual orientation until they get to the age where they understand the birds and the bees. Throwing sexual orientation into the mix will only bring up questions no parent should be answering when their kid is 6 or 7.

 

[AVATAR_RAGE]

Shows aimed at teenagers should, seeing as this is the part of your life that allows you to explore your sexuality. This could help a lot of young people find themselves. Though should be shown as equally as important as heterosexual characters.

 

[KiraTaureLor]

I personally do not think that there should be any sexual/love relations in kids shows, there is so many other important, and better fit topics that could be explored.

There are thoughts, and opinions that say that if homosexuality is included in shows for growing kids, it that could be a option for them to consider even though it could have never crossed their minds either way.