Longtime children’s program Sesame Street is “shoving Pride Month down kids’ throats” with a prideful Elmo. An article by The Western Journal, reposted by The Gateway Pundit, reveals the beloved children’s character celebrating Pride Month in a video aimed at tots ages two through five. Elmo kicked off the month on June 1 with actress Ariana DeBose, who allegedly identifies as “queer.” DeBose says in the video: “Elmo and I wanted to share that everyone is always welcome on ‘Sesame Street.’ This month and every month, we want to uplift and celebrate our LGBTQIA+ family, friends and communities.” Elmo then chimes in: “From our ‘Sesame Street’ family to yours, happy pride. Elmo loves you.” The Journal observed that “sexual activities should not even be part of a discussion with such young children. But here is the most iconic kids’ TV show pushing ‘pride month’ on little ones, anyway.” The show also saluted Pride Month on Twitter. The first tweet read: “Everyone is always welcome on Sesame Street. Let’s celebrate LGBTQIA+ people in our communities this Pride Month and every day! Happy Pride Month!” A second tweet on June 2 read: “This Pride Month, let’s celebrate diversity and unity and spread love and acceptance. Together, we can make the world a kinder place for all.” While some Twitter users supported Sesame Street’s stance, one objector asked producers: “Isn’t this a show created specifically for preschoolers and very young children? Why isn’t the show sticking to being kind to all while omitting all talk of sexuality, gender, and other topics suited solely for mature minds? Why not allow tiny ones to be innocent & carefree?” Another user agreed, tweeting: “Please explain to all of us why a show geared towards very small children would ever need to recognize or mention someone’s sexuality.” As The Western Journal noted: “Sesame Street has a wholesome reputation, but it hasn’t lived up to that level for a long time. Parents beware.”

A Twitter user known as Underlord posted a compelling thread on June 1st titled “ESG and Pride Month: The Coercive Rainbow Agenda.” The post charges that ESG’s (Environmental, Social, and Governance) “virtue signaling and manipulation reach new heights during June and that it is a “rainbow-colored façade” for ESG’s “social engineering agenda.” Underlord states: “ESG's involvement in Pride Month may appear to be a celebration of diversity and inclusivity to some. However, under the surface, it is a mechanism for social engineering and ideological conformity. ESG dictates which messages are acceptable, effectively silencing dissenting voices and imposing a rigid set of beliefs. The colorful rainbow is turned into a symbol of control, where deviation from the approved narrative is met with shaming and corporate penalties.” Interspersed with colorful graphics, the thread contends that “ESG’s presence during Pride Month reeks of tokenism, with corporations exploiting the social currency of the LGBTQ+ agenda for their own gain. The focus on identity categories erodes the importance of individual experiences and merit.” Underlord calls Pride Month “a platform where one's worth is reduced to sexual orientation or gender identity” rather than an acknowledgement of the complexity of each individual. “ESG's influence enforces an ideological orthodoxy, demanding everyone fall in line with its predetermined agenda. Dissenting views or nuanced discussions are dismissed as intolerant or ignorant, leaving little room for dialogue or open-mindedness.” Therefore, says Underlord, “it becomes more about enforcing a cult-like definition of what it means to be inclusive.” The thread points out that ESG’s involvement in Pride Month “transforms ‘progressive’ movements into marketing strategies, where corporations use the rainbow flag to boost their profits and corporate equality index scores (or CEI). Finally, Underlord writes: “[W]e must remain vigilant and steadfast in resisting the manipulation and coercion that seeks to undermine the foundations and values that maintain stable societies.” While this thread focuses on ESG’s impact on corporations, the same may be said for education and America’s institutions across the board.

Yet another parent is pleading with Virginia’s Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) to remove obscene books containing illustrations of “deviant sex acts” from school libraries. Mom of six, Stacy Langton, demanded answers from school board members about their lack of action and accountability after she called attention to a “particularly egregious” book she found in the Fairfax County Public School Library. Langton is not the only parent who has taken the FCPS to task in recent years for various reasons, but she has spoken before the school board several times during public comment periods over the past 18 months about objectionable books she calls “porn book story hour.” While no board member has previously reached out to her, she says she did get a response following her testimony about the sexually explicit book Queer: A Graphic History.” After speaking out about the book at the school board meeting on May 11, “they sent me an email the next day and that has never happened before... maybe for them, this book was a bridge too far.” She says she doesn’t want to get overly optimistic “because they’ve never done anything about these books.” In addition to the pornographic illustrations, Langton explained that Queer “teaches that there is no good or bad kind of sex and that there [is] only a diverse range of practices and attractions.” She laments that she cannot get answers as to “who is bringing these pornographic books into the school district,” and she believes offering this level of pornography to children is illegal. “You cannot put sexually explicit imagery in front of minors. It’s against the law.” One thing is certain, the FCPS libraries are not the only ones stocking pornographic books and serving them up to kids. But with parental awareness growing and their willingness to fight back increasing, parents’ rights activists believe efforts like Langton’s will soon bear fruit.

Want to be notified of new Education Reporter content?
Your information will NOT be sold or shared and will ONLY be used to notify you of new content.
Click Here

Return to Home PageEducation Reporter Online - June 2023