A Six Flags in Texas said it would not scrub the amusement park of Warner Bros. cartoon Pepe Le Pew after the skunk has faced repeated allegations of perpetuating rape culture.
“No changes are planned as we assess guest feedback regarding this and other intellectual property within our parks,” Six Flags Entertainment spokeswoman Sandra Daniels said of the Six Flags Over Texas park.
Warner Bros. cartoons are a fixture at the Texas park, with merchandise and mascots using Pepe Le Pew’s likeness. But the cartoon has come under fire since a New York Times column argued it perpetuates rape culture.
“Some of the first cartoons I can remember included Pepé Le Pew, who normalized rape culture,” Charles M. Blow wrote in a column.
Blow later repeated his stance, saying on Twitter that the cartoon “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.”
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
Warner Bros. announced Pepe Le Pew had been axed from a scene in its Space Jam sequel in 2021, and the studio has no plans to use the character in new projects.
Warner Bros. isn’t alone in canceling cartoons deemed inappropriate, with Disney+ removing several movies, including Dumbo and Peter Pan, from children’s profiles over stereotypes deemed offensive.
Disney+ also came under fire in recent months after former Mandalorian star Gina Carano was fired from the show following voicing conservative views on social media.
