Even in creating my post for this earlier this week, the first line of the article read "This will sure make One Million Moms upset!" Well… I was right!
In a not so shocking move, anti-gay group One Million Moms has launched a Disney channel boycott over the groundbreaking storyline on their series Andi Mack. The storyline in question revolves around the Andi, the main character, and her male friend, Cyrus, who both have a crush on the same guy.
They took to their official page to launch the boycott, which has 8,100 signatures so far. Andi Mack's show averages about 2 million viewers per episode, just for some numbers comparisons. Here's what they have to say about this:
One might question why Disney Channel feels the need to pursue such programming. Minsky states, “[The network] asked me for something different. They wanted to attract an older audience.”
Why? What is wrong with having family-friendly content that is acceptable for all ages or even leaving a couple of networks solely for children’s entertainment? Disney Channel is gradually becoming another Freeform Network. As one of only a few channels catering to children, it cannot possibly be that Disney Channel has a financial need for more adult viewers.
By choosing to abandon family-friendly entertainment, Disney’s inexplicable choice to move toward more “adult” fare may ultimately prove to be a huge mistake.
The Disney Channel is deliberately choosing to “move forward” and promote adult content to children. By choosing to move in the direction of more “adult” stories and content, the Disney Channel – and the entire Disney media empire – may be choosing to sacrifice something far more precious… children’s innocence.
Disney Channel previously said in a statement: “Andi Mack is a story about ‘tweens’ figuring out who they are. [Creator] Terri Minsky, the cast and everyone involved in the show takes great care in ensuring that it’s appropriate for all audiences and sends a powerful message about inclusion and respect for humanity.”
GLAAD president Sarah Kate Ellis said the show’s groundbreaking gay storyline “makes for positive role models both for kids and adult viewers.”
What are your thoughts on One Million Moms attack on this show?
My daughter was upset and
My daughter was upset and shock. I was pissed. Kid's don't need an agenda or another issue. Kids don't need to worry about in school. We have boycotted the show.
Disney, your going to regret it
I do think this show belongs
I do think this show belongs on ABC Family rather than the Disney Channel, since it is aimed at an older audience and it is a drama series, however, Disney is running out of ideas for kid's sitcoms, and after hitting a stride a few years ago, it has slumped a bit. It probably needs to find new niches to explore. I also see no problem with a channel with pure entertainment for the 12 and under crowd, but it was not that objectionable. The kids talking about the show afterwards did not strike me as spontaneous, but it was hardly propaganda. That being said, the One Million Moms would object no matter the channel or time it aired.