Sesame Street takes a gay turn
Bert and Ernie are gay.
Or at least that’s what Sesame Street writer Mark Saltzman alluded to in an interview with the New York Post, igniting passionate comments from those in favor of this gay muppet couple and those opposed.
Though members of the LGBT+ community and other enthusiastic fans have claimed this unconventional couple for decades, Saltzman says that his intention was not to promote any certain agenda, but that the way the characters were written stemmed from his own relationship with film editor Arnold Glassman.
“I don’t think I’d know how else to write them, but as a loving couple,” Saltzman reflected.
In response to Saltzman’s interview, Frank Oz, an esteemed puppeteer who assisted with the creation of Bert’s character took to Twitter to express his own views on the matter.
“It seems Mr. Mark Saltzman was asked if Bert & Ernie are gay. It’s fine that he feels they are,” he writes.
Oz continues to say that, “They’re not, of course. But why that question? Does it really matter? Why the need to define people as only gay?”
When it came time for Sesame Street itself to respond, instead of leaving it up to the viewer’s interpretation, Sesame Street decided to release a statement on Twitter citing that, “[Bert and Ernie] remain puppets, and do not have a sexual orientation.”
This tweet was later deleted, and they reposted a revised statement.
This revised response read, “Sesame Street has always stood for inclusion and acceptance. It’s a place where people of all cultures and backgrounds are welcome. Bert and Ernie were created to be best friends, and to teach young children that people can get along with those who are very different from themselves.”
As several tweets pointed out, however, the characters that Sesame Street Muppets represent have absolutely been shown to have a sexual orientation, but only if it’s straight. Twitter users tweeted that Oscar the Grouch has a girlfriend named Grundgetta, and also that The Count’s numerous female “lovers” have appeared in his segments. Additionally, Elmo’s parents are male and female, and infrequent guest stars Miss Piggy and Kermit are in a relationship.
So why is Sesame Workshop going so out of their way to denounce something that could easily have been left up to interpretation?
After outrage in the queer community, Sesame Workshop released an updated statement emphasizing the inclusiveness that their show has demonstrated in the past and removing mention of sexual orientation in its entirety, but the damage has already been done.
Although we have come so far with representation in the media, specifically children’s media, it really shows where we’re at as a society when the mere mention of homosexuality requires a public statement. While many have speculated for years that Ernie and Bert were lovers, the moment someone from Sesame Workshop dares to confirm the theory, the world is up in arms.
Though it is great that they realized their mistake and rereleased their statement, let Sesame Street be an example of the underlying homophobia that still exists in our society.
