Most millennials grew up watching all of the classic Walt Disney movies. From the Dalmatian plantation to Sleeping Beauty’s cottage, and from Dumbo’s Circus to Cinderella’s castle, Disney took our young imaginations on countless adventures. Over the years Disney has worked to expand its films to be more inclusive.
The long-anticipated, live action remake of the classic film “Beauty and the Beast,” which premiers tonight, is expected to feature Disney’s first gay character, Lefou. This decision to include a gay character and an “exclusively gay moment” has been met with intense criticism particularly from religiously conservative Americans.
An argument that many have expressed is that sexuality does not belong in children’s movies. However, When any character falls in love with another or is raised by two parents of the opposite sex, that is sexuality being depicted in a children’s movie. Up until this point, most characters in children’s movies have been depicted as heterosexuals. That never caused controversy. The real issue those who make this argument have is not “sexuality” in a children’s movie. Rather, it is that children’s movies remain one of the final public bastions where homosexuality is still not visible. The opponents of LGBT equality don’t like that homosexuality is becoming more and more accepted by the general public.
However, according to a study from the Pew Research Center, the millennial generation supports gay marriage by a margin of 3 to 1. Support for things such as gay adoption, gay marriage and employment protections for LGBT individuals is more than 50 percent and is continuing to climb.
There has been a cultural shift in attitudes toward the LGBT community, and support for the transgender community is also growing. This has occurred in generations that only saw movies as children that featured straight characters. It is highly likely that the next generation will be even more supportive of equal rights for the LGBT community because they will be the first generation to be raised by parents who supported equal rights for LGBT people. This one scene or the absence thereof will not turn back the clock on public opinion, nor will it make the next generation any more or less likely to be accepting of homosexuality. What it will do is legitimize and empower young gay children.
Childhood can be a very challenging time when one is gay.
Gay children are constantly experiencing feelings that defy what society expects of them. By the time they reach adolescence, gay teens are nearly six times as likely as their straight peers to experience depression and more than eight times more likely to attempt suicide, according to PFLAG NYC.
By taking the small step of introducing its first gay character, Disney is sending a signal to LGBT youths that their identity and the feelings they are experiencing are natural and acceptable. While having a minor gay character in a Disney movie is a small step on the long road to equality for the gay community, it is an important one, and Disney should be commemorated for enduring the criticism that has come with it.
jusexton@umail.iu.edu
