New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow argued in a recent piece that cartoon character Pepé Le Pew perpetuates rape culture.
“As a child, I was led to believe that Blackness was inferior. And I was not alone. The Black society into which I was born was riddled with these beliefs,” Blow wrote in a New York Times column published last week. “It happened for children in the most inconspicuous of ways: It was relayed through toys and dolls, cartoons and children’s shows, fairy tales and children’s books.”
“Some of the first cartoons I can remember included Pepé Le Pew, who normalized rape culture,” Blow added of Looney Tunes’ skunk cartoon.
Blow reiterated his stance, which came in a piece titled “Six Seuss Books Bore a Bias,” in Twitter messages this weekend.
“RW blogs are mad bc I said Pepe Le Pew added to rape culture. Let’s see. 1. He grabs/kisses a girl/stranger, repeatedly, w/o consent and against her will. 2. She struggles mightily to get away from him, but he won’t release her 3. He locks a door to prevent her from escaping,” he tweeted Saturday.
“This helped teach boys that ‘no’ didn’t really mean no, that it was a part of ‘the game’, the starting line of a power struggle. It taught overcoming a woman’s strenuous, even physical objections, was normal, adorable, funny. They didn’t even give the woman the ability to SPEAK,” he said.
This helped teach boys that “no” didn’t really mean no, that it was a part of “the game”, the starting line of a power struggle. It taught overcoming a woman’s strenuous, even physical objections, was normal, adorable, funny. They didn’t even give the woman the ability to SPEAK.
— Charles M. Blow (@CharlesMBlow) March 6, 2021
Blow’s comments were met with an array of reactions, ranging from defending the cartoon to supporting Blow.
At first I was thinking “That’s a complete exaggeration!” Then I saw this… https://t.co/QTjNwqHsIw
— Sharon Carpenter (@sharoncarpenter) March 6, 2021
btw I’m assuming Charles Blow has come out against every rapper ever, right? Because if you think Pepe Le Pew is a problem, hoo boy go listen to the music I grew up on.
— LB (@beyondreasdoubt) March 6, 2021
You just described Joe Biden. https://t.co/rhRWL22p7j
— Brigitte Gabriel (@ACTBrigitte) March 6, 2021
Unnecessary manufactured rage from the right to feed the base and to distract from the fact 0 Republicans voted for COVID relief. https://t.co/en0Wro3XO5
— Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) March 7, 2021
