Hatred, Ignorance, and "Morality:" Can We Please Make it Stop?

 

There are a lot of things I simply don't understand. Complex mathematics. The appeal of the Power Rangers in adults. Why people actually enjoy running. But, while I don't understand them, I'm not going around bashing mathematicians, Power Rangers fans, and runners. I'm very proud to say I count some in each category among my nearest and dearest. If there is one thing I will never truly comprehend, however, it's the extreme levels of hatred, ignorance, and intolerance so pervasive today…. Sadly, though not unsurprisingly, it more than often comes from those claiming to be "religious." And I struggle to understand why.

 

There are states in our country, supposedly "the land of the free," that are currently banning education based on our actual history. They criminalize parents who support the LGBTQ children as "abusers." They refuse to allow their schools to even acknowledge homosexuality as if refusing to say the word "gay" means that it doesn't exist. And they do so in most cases hiding behind Christian scripture. What's worse is the way they cherry-pick which provisions of the Bible they choose to follow, completely ignoring the vast majority of Jesus's teachings that they allegedly hold so dear in the process.

 

It's ignorance. It's intolerance. It's hatred.

 

WHY?

 

I've always argued that fanaticism in any form is, well, bad. Very bad. Religion only exacerbates the problem. Don't believe me? Ever heard of the Crusades? Millions died "in the name of God." Call me crazy but mass murdering entire populations because they don't think or act like you do doesn't seem particularly "Christian" to me. And those screaming against Sharia Law, claiming it to be based in intolerant religion, do so without a hint of irony at the fact that they are literally, LITERALLY now governing on the basis of one religion over all others.  It doesn't end there, though it should have ended long before it even got to the point of elected officials blatantly violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. It didn't, of course, because extremism of belief is a plague that permeates the entire fabric of our society.

 

As you may know, in addition to my day job I also work in the entertainment news media industry. I am a co-owner of multiple entertainment and entertainment news enterprises. I am a writer. And though I don't have as much time to do so as I used to, I continue to monitor the news and write stories when able. Two recent headlines  immediately come to mind regarding the ignorance born of intolerance and hate, or simply of the belief that *your* beliefs, *your* morality, are somehow superior to others. Each has left me shaking my head and genuinely sorrowful for our society.

 

First, religious conservative groups are all up in arms because today the Netflix cadre of shows based on Marvel comics arrive on the Disney+ streaming platform. They include Daredevil, The Punisher, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders. The issue is this: the shows are rated MA and contain a lot of violence, colorful language, and yes, even the sex.  Of course extremists are angry. Such things don't comply with their ideological norm. But here's where things go sideways in a hurry:

 

They claim, and I wish I was making this up, that by allowing these shows on Disney+, Disney is opening the door to strippers performing on Main Street at Disney World.

Excuse me what?

 

There is clearly no logic to that argument whatsoever. (And if you don't believe it, a simple Google search will confirm these extremist groups' ridiculous reactions.) Honestly, how can anyone make that leap, if not through abject ignorance?  For one thing, Disney fully acknowledges that the shows aren't intended for children and has implemented parental controls on the streaming platform specifically for that reason. Don't want to watch, or don't want your kids to, either? Turn. On. The. Parental. Controls. Period. Full Stop. End of issue. But for the zealot, for the extremist, that's not enough. They refuse to accept any responsibility themselves to parent their children, demanding instead that Disney do it for them. And herein lies the other rub: it's as if these people have never seen a Disney movie.

 

The Little Mermaid is a story about an underage teen who gives up her family and her voice for a chance to "fall in love" with an older man she's never even met. That's apparently an A-Okay message to send to young women.

 

Beauty and the Beast is literally about Stockholm Syndrome, a/k/a a prisoner eventually having a relationship with her abusive captor. Again, perfectly acceptable.

 

For f*ck's sake, The Lion King literally shows Scar MURDER Mufasa and then attempt to murder an innocent child. But hey, Hakuna matata!

 

(For more examples of Disney "depravity," click HERE.)

 

How these people can seek to enforce their "morality" in such hypocritical fashion is well beyond my level of comprehension.

 

The second story revolves around the new Pixar film Turning Red, but ties into the examples I just noted. The film focusses on a teenage, Chinese-Canadian girl coming of age in the early 2000s in Toronto. Subjects depicted in the film include your usual teen angst, boys, dating, struggles of growing up in what white people will undoubtedly describe as an "ethnic" household, and, are you ready for this?

 

Menstruation.

 

*GASP*

 

NOT PERIODS!!!!!! THE HORROR!!!!!

 

*blink blink*

 

Again, not unsurprisingly, and again, I wish I was making this up, a lot of arguments are coming from (shocking, I know) white men complaining about their 8-10 year-old sons learning about periods or the film's emphasis on another culture. One complaint I came across claimed that Disney/Pixar pulled a bait-and-switch by advertising the movie with a cute red panda and then teaching about sexuality.

 

There's a lot to unpack here.

 

1. First, Here's the official synopsis for the movie: "Disney and Pixar’s “Turning Red” introduces Mei Lee (voice of Rosalie Chiang), a confident, dorky 13-year-old torn between staying her mother’s dutiful daughter and the chaos of adolescence. Her protective, if not slightly overbearing mother, Ming (voice of Sandra Oh), is never far from her daughter—an unfortunate reality for the teenager. And as if changes to her interests, relationships and body weren’t enough, whenever she gets too excited (which is practically ALWAYS), she “poofs” into a giant red panda! I've added some emphasis to a  couple of phrases, but anyone who can read should be able to discern the topics of the film simply by, oh, I don't know, READING. But it's easier, and lazier, to not bother to research a film before letting your child watch it and then get pissed off at the film studio for not… what, exactly? They literally, LITERALY put out the press release I just quoted telling you exactly what’s to come in the movie. But it's Disney's fault your son learned about periods from a giant, red panda.

 

2. The title of the movie is, wait for it… TURNING RED. Perhaps, just maybe, the title might have provided a bit of a clue as to the subject matter.

 

3.  Turning Red is rated PG. According to the Motion Picture Association of America, "PG" means that "parents are urged to give "parental guidance." May contain some material parents might not like for their young children." Sorry to again use the word "literally" but there is literally a written warning telling you that the film may contains some things you might not want your child to see. Yet… it's the studio's fault you didn’t bother to check and see what those things might be before plopping your kid down on the couch in front of the television with some popcorn and a fruit pouch. And lastly….

 

4. Grow. Up. The subject matter has nothing to do with "morality," nor is it corrupting the minds of America's youth. Are you that ignorant and ashamed of human biology? I mean, presumably the child in question has (or God forbid, had) a mother. Grandmother. Aunts. Sisters. A life literally filled with women of one type or another. Is your masculinity so fragile that you can't understand, or worse, won't allow your "young" son to understand something that's 100% completely natural? Something they may very well encounter in their own home? Something that ever single woman they'll ever encounter has experienced, does, or will experience on a monthly basis for the majority of lives?

 

Refusal to research. Refusal to accept responsibly as a parent. Refusal to teach your child. Creating stigma where there should be none. All in the name of extreme belief or ignorance.

 

I just don't get it.

 

How did we get to this point? How are we as a society so backwards in 2022? If you believe in Christ or are Christian, it's been over two thousand years and yet we still can't act with responsibility, or treat others, all others, with dignity and respect, as He preached?

 

I'm not giving up, though. I can't. I have two daughters to raise. I will do all I can to instill in them the notion that extremism, disrespect, bigotry, hatred, and ignorance will only and unnecessarily hurt others for no reason whatsoever. I'll do everything I can to teach my daughters not to act in such ways, and to teach them that they don't deserve to be treated in such ways, either. No, my daughters won't be "princesses." If Disney teaches anything (see above), it's that becoming a "Disney Princess" is generally not a goal to which one should aspire.

 

Rather, I wish for my girls to become strong. Brave. Intelligent. Resilient. Kind. Empathetic. Respectful… and respected.

 

 I want nothing more for them to become women free from the burdens so many women have unnecessarily endured before them. A lofty goal, admittedly, but one we'll never reach unless we continue to try.

 Can we please try?