Yet another classic kids' TV character is under fire for perpetuating negative social behaviors. This time, Miss Piggy has come under fire by social media users who say that if Looney Tunes character Pepe Le Pew should be canceled, so should The Muppets' Miss Piggy. Both of the characters have been accused of promoting rape culture and sexual harassment.
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At the same time, many folks are defending Looney Tunes character Speedy Gonzales after he was called out by the same writer who initially called from Pepe Le Pew to be canceled in a New York Times op-ed piece, claiming that the beloved Speedy, "helped popularize the corrosive stereotype of the drunk and lethargic Mexicans." Here's everything we know about the controversy.
The New York Times op-ed started it all.
At the beginning of March, writer Charles Blow wrote an op-ed piece for The New York Times in which he suggested that racism should be removed from "children's culture," and called out prolific children's book author, the late Dr. Seuss.
It resulted in six Dr. Seuss books being pulled from production.
The op-ed piece resulted in six books by prolific children's book author the late Dr. Seuss being pulled from production and a major controversy ensuing between people calling for Dr. Seuss to be canceled for his racist past and others defending him and the books that were named as biased by Blow.
Pepe Le Pew and Speedy Gonzales were both named in the same op-ed.
"Some of the first cartoons I can remember included Pepé Le Pew, who normalized rape culture; Speedy Gonzales, whose friends helped popularize the corrosive stereotype of the drunk and lethargic Mexicans," Blow wrote.
Pepe was cut from the upcoming 'Space Jam' movie.
In the aftermath of the inflammatory op-ed, it was announced that the little French skunk, who is known for being quite the ladies' man, will not make an appearance in the upcoming Space Jam: A New Legacy movie. Interestingly, the scene he was featured in was apparently cut before the op-ed was written.
The scene itself illustrates why the character is offensive.
"Pepe was set to appear in a black-and-white Casablanca-like Rick's Cafe sequence," described Deadline reporter Anthony D'Alessandro. "Pepe, playing a bartender, starts hitting on a woman at the bar played by Santo. He begins kissing her arm, which she pulls back, then slamming Pepe into the chair next to hers. She then pours her drink on Pepe, and slaps him hard, sending him spinning in a stool, which is then stopped by LeBron James' hand. James and Bugs Bunny are looking for Lola, and Pepe knows her whereabouts. Pepe then tells the guys that Penelope cat has filed a restraining order against him. James makes a remark in the script that Pepe can’t grab other Tunes without their consent."
Pepe isn't likely to appear in the future.
Allegedly, Warner Bros. doesn't have any content featuring the animated skunk in the works and it say he will not appear in any of the Looney Tunes shows that are currently in production.
This all prompted the Miss Piggy controversy.
After learning that Pepe le Pew has essentially been canceled, many people took to social media suggesting that Muppets character Miss Piggy should be canceled as well because her treatment of Kermit the Frog essentially amounts to sexual harassment.
The claims are valid.
"Can't wait to see Miss Piggy cancelled for physical and emotional abuse toward Kermit," pointed out one Twitter user. "She's been karate chopping him since the 70's, poor little bastard."
And it's pretty obvious that what's good for the goose should be good for the gander as well. Plus, the Muppets have already been deemed controversial in some respects.
The Muppets now come with a disclaimer.
In February The Muppet Show landed on the Disney+ streaming service, but the show came with a disclaimer warning viewers that it could be deemed offensive. The disclaimer reads: "This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together." So, basically the problem with characters like Miss Piggy has already been acknowledged.
But Speedy Gonzales is coming out of it all unscathed.
Now, back to Speedy. Although Blow accused the adorable Mexican mouse of perpetuating stereotypes, Mexicans are not standing for calls to cancel him. Many say they loved watching Speedy when they were growing up.
Comedian Gabriel Iglesias got involved.
It has been confirmed that as of now, Speedy Gonzales will appear in the new Space Jam movie. Comedian Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias voices the character, and took to Twitter to defend him saying, "U can't catch me cancel culture. I'm the fastest mouse in all of Mexico," essentially ending the debate.
