I did a little research to find other perspectives on the Ellerbee show. I clipped a few of them together in case you are interested.
------------------------------
It's As Bad As We Thought!
Wednesday, June 19 @ 11:30:37 EDT
Nickelodeon Pushes Homosexual Agenda On 'My Family is Different'
June 19, 2002
Washington, DC – “After watching Nickelodeon’s special ‘My Family is Different,’ last night, it confirmed my worst fears about this cable network’s efforts to normalize homosexuality for children,” said Traditional Values Coalition Executive Director Andrea Lafferty today. “Nickelodeon has come down on the side of homosexuality—and millions of children were exposed to this abnormal lifestyle—thanks to Linda Ellerbee and homosexual activist Rosie O’Donnell.”
Linda Ellerbee started her program by directing a comment to her TV audience by stating that many of them have homosexual parents. “Ellerbee is perpetuating the myth that 10% of the population is homosexual and that millions of children are being raised in same-sex households,” said Lafferty. Nickelodeon rated this program for older audiences but advertised it all day long on its network.
It is not wrong or discriminatory to use discernment when you are deciding if something is morally right or morally wrong. We are using discernment when we oppose the use of alcohol, drugs, or pornography. We should also be discerning over whether or not we approve of the normalization of homosexual behavior,”.
“Over a quarter of a million parents have joined Traditional Values Coalition in expressing outrage that Nickelodeon aired this program and fear that many children who viewed it will now think it’s okay to experiment with homosexual sex,” said Lafferty. “Studies indicate that many kids in the Nick target age group are unsure about their sexuality and that those in homosexual homes are more likely to experiment with homosexuality. By having authority figures like a homosexual fireman, homosexual school principal, and Rosie O’Donnell on this show, it legitimized what are very dangerous sexual behaviors.”
Nickelodeon’s publicists claimed that this program would be a balanced discussion of same-sex parenting, but it was totally skewed to the pro-homosexual side said Mrs. Lafferty. “Out of the ten people on the show, only three were vocally opposed to homosexuality. Ellerbee did not invite even one non-homosexual adult on the set to present a clear case against homosexuality. In addition, she allowed the supporters of homosexuality to subtly insult those kids who came at this issue from a Christian perspective by saying they just didn’t know any better because of their upbringing—and that they were close minded,” said Lafferty. “In spite of these affronts, these Christian teens were courageous in presenting their views.”
Linda Ellerbee discussed discrimination and hate crimes, yet as Mrs. Lafferty notes: “Ellerbee is confused about her terms. It is not wrong or discriminatory to use discernment when you are deciding if something is morally right or morally wrong. We are using discernment when we oppose the use of alcohol, drugs, or pornography. We should also be discerning over whether or not we approve of the normalization of homosexual behavior,” said Lafferty.
“I was deeply saddened when Rosie O’Donnell admitted on the show that her own son says he misses having a dad,” said Lafferty. “Rosie is working to normalize something that even her own children recognize as being abnormal and wish were not part of their own lives. This speaks volumes to me.”
Mrs. Lafferty says that Nickelodeon should have invited ex-gay ministry representatives on the set to discuss their deliverance from the homosexual lifestyle or should have invited psychologists from a group like the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) to discuss the root causes of homosexual behavior.
“Nickelodeon has joined forces with the homosexual media and has proven that it is no longer a safe harbor for children,” said Lafferty. “Parents can no longer trust this cable network.”
------------------------------
THE GAY LESSONS OF LINDA ELLERBEE
By ADAM BUCKMAN
June 18, 2002 --
QUESTION for parents: Who do you want raising your kids: you or Linda Ellerbee?
If you answered "you," then I suggest you steer your Nickelodeon-aged kiddies away from Ellerbee's new "Nick News" special on gay parents and their children.
The special, premiering tonight at 9 on Nick, is called "My Family is Different." And right then, you know what you're in for: another tiresome TV show preaching the gospel of diversity, tolerance and self-esteem.
In the show, Ellerbee sits cross-legged in a big red chair wearing red Converse sneakers and leads a discussion on gay parenting with a group of kids, a gay New York fireman, a gay middle-school principal and Rosie O'Donnell.
Ellerbee is careful at the outset to note that her discussion on homosexuality is not about sexuality (it's really about the abuse heaped on the children of gay parents by other children), so parents shouldn't worry about allowing their kids to watch.
The problem is that removing sex from a discussion on gay life robs the discussion of a component that, to many people, is essential if you're talking about homosexuality.
Critics of this show - including some religious groups that blasted it sight-unseen - complained that the show sounds like a thinly disguised endorsement of alternative lifestyles that many Americans aren't ready to embrace.
Ellerbee takes pains to say several times that she intends to show all points of view, both for and against households led by gay parents - including an appearance by the Rev. Jerry Falwell, who is, predictably, against the idea.
But no matter how much Ellerbee insists otherwise, her show is a blatant endorsement of gay parenting. If for no other reason, Rosie O'Donnell's presence makes it so. (In addition, check out the show's end credits and you'll see a list of the gay groups who get "special thanks" for their assistance.)
And in any case, recruiting Falwell - as well as two kids in the discussion group who declare they're Christians - immediately labels anyone who is uncomfortable with gay parents as someone who is in conformity with far right wing views and, therefore, not representative of "mainstream" America.
Parents in mainstream America, however, should actively resist every time TV - or in this case, Linda Ellerbee - assumes the role of teacher and moralizer in their kids' lives.
------------------------------
Averse to gay parents? Bet you don't watch this
June 18, 2002
BY PHIL ROSENTHAL TELEVISION CRITIC
If you're of a mind to be intolerant of gays as parents, it's unlikely Linda Ellerbee's "Nick News Special Edition: My Family Is Different" will change your opinion.
You're liable to cite the program as yet another example of lefty propaganda run amok, trying to indoctrinate kids against traditional values, such as they may be.
But it will not open your mind mainly because you and your presumably also-intolerant kids probably will not watch at 8 tonight on cable's Nickelodeon.
Intolerance requires one to be absolutely certain of the righteousness of one's convictions, and Ellerbee and company, just as sure of theirs, have produced a *** show that's sells open-mindedness to the already open-minded.
Defusing hatred is a noble pursuit. The mistake may have been in making the focus of the tolerance urged by this particular half-hour so narrow. Had being of a different sexual orientation been lumped in with other subjects of prejudice such as race, creed or religion, it would be a lot harder to rally against it.
Instead, more than 100,000 e-mails and phone calls have been logged by Nickelodeon protesting the very existence of Ellerbee's program. That's thousands of people undoubtedly targeted by the program who can be counted on not to watch, let alone be swayed.
This is a show designed to help kids whose household has one or more same-sex parents by discouraging taunts and other acts of prejudice from peers.
If memory serves, however, kids make fun of one another all the time for anything that makes the tauntee unique in some way. After all, if kids were mature, considerate, always rational and reasonable, they would be adults. And, as the e-mails and calls of protest would seem to bear out, the concept of respecting those you disagree with even if you don't accept their beliefs is a tough one even for grownups.
"Sometimes we hate people because we don't know them, and we won't know them because we hate them," Ellerbee says in opening the show, having laid out the idea that this forum will be about tolerating homosexual parents, not about sex or even about what to think.
If you're intolerant of homosexuals, however, you will see this as completely about sex and what to think.
So instead of succeeding in getting conflicted kids to watch the show with their parents as "a good starting point for [a discussion of] your own family beliefs on the subject," Ellerbee is in effect alerting parents who might object to at least tape the show ahead of time and screen it before sharing it with the youngsters, assuming they don't simply change channels for something less challenging to watch.
The multiracial, multiethnic kids on the set bat around the idea of homosexuality, with the antigay side rooted in the kind of deeply held religious beliefs that everyone should, well, tolerate.
But none of these kids actually cops to serious intolerance of those they don't agree with, beyond saying they believe gay lifestyles shouldn't simply be accepted as the norm. One little girl does concede it might be tough (but not unthinkable) to invite a classmate with a gay parent into her home.
Nick's news release for the program touts the participation of both Rosie O'Donnell and the Rev. Jerry Falwell. But it's not a a level playing field.
O'Donnell is one of the three on-set adult guests, all openly gay, and she even helps one kid finish a sentence. Falwell, meanwhile, is relegated to taped remarks in a midshow segment that Ellerbee prefaces by saying, "People are entitled to their own opinions."
Falwell, who expresses his opposition to homosexuality yet urges people not to harass gays or their innocent kids, has since come out against the show. Asked by the Associated Press how he could appear on the show and then call for Nick not to run it, Falwell said, "I've often said I would preach in hell if they promised to let me out."
Even the harshest critics of Nickelodeon would be hard-pressed to call the home of "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "Blue's Clues" hell, no matter what they think of this "Nick News" special, which is running in place of the normal Nick at Nite repeat of "The Cosby Show."
"We don't become gay or straight by talking about these things," Ellerbee said. "Gay is not catching. Hate, however, is. ... If we can't be friends, maybe we can at least learn to be better strangers to one another."
That assumes everyone is willing to sit down and really listen to one another in the first place.
-------------
June 6, 2002
Gay Principal Notifies Parents of Sexual Orientation (MN)
During 20 years as an educator, Mark French kept his work and private life separate, mostly because he didn' t think it was relevant. But, in late May, circumstances forced the Oak View Elementary School principal to sit down and write a letter to the parents of his 700 students and tell them he's gay.
The following is an excerpt from an article printed in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Any opinions either stated or suggested are not necessarily those of GLSEN or its members.
MAPLE GROVE, Minn. (AP) - During 20 years as an educator, Mark French kept his work and private life separate, mostly because he didn' t think it was relevant.
But, in late May, circumstances forced the Oak View Elementary School principal to sit down and write a letter to the parents of his 700 students and tell them he's gay.
"Dear Oak View Families," the letter began. "I have been asked to appear on the Nickelodeon Network's 'Nick News for Kids' program hosted by Linda Ellerbee. It is a current-events program for children. I have been asked to be a guest, along with Rosie O'Donnell, for a program about gay families."
Oak View, in Maple Grove, will hold its final classes Wednesday and French's reluctant admission puts a strange ending on the school year for him.
"It is new territory for us," said Chris Richardson, superintendent of the Osseo School District.
As it turns out, it's likely new territory for many elementary schools.
"This kind of thing has not come up before, to my knowledge," said June Million, a spokeswoman who has worked for the National Association of Elementary School Teachers for 16 years. "We don't have any services for gay principals, but we have had some requests. We know there are gay principals, but I'm not aware of one addressing the community like this. It's something the association is very interested in."
Reaction to French's letter has been mild. French, who has been principal at Oak View for four years, said he received about 20 e-mails, mostly positive.
Only one person broached the issue at Tuesday's Parent-Teacher Organization board meeting - a mother who said she may remove her daughter from the school next year. However, several parents were disappointed that news leaked out to students before parents could see the letter.
French, who was in New York taping the show this week, said he intended the letter to go directly to the parents, "who could make the decision of whether to discuss it with their children, or not."
But due to communication problems and rumors, which leaked out to kids before parents got the letter, one teacher read the letter aloud in class. Another allowed students to read it before their parents did.
French, Richardson and members of the PTO say they regret the leak. "In hindsight, with the sensitive nature of the issue, a sealed letter should have gone directly to parents" in the district's regular Wednesday information packet, Richardson said.
French, who said he has known he was gay since junior high, has never tried to hide his homosexuality. "It' s not something I'm ashamed of, " he said. "I've been involved in the local (gay) community. And I took the opportunity last year to come out to my staff."
Yet, French said, he never felt the need to broadcast his sexual identity - until he met Ellerbee at a conference, and was invited to appear on a show called "My Family is Different" with O'Donnell and others. French was asked to speak on the program about a school's role in dealing with gay families. He didn't want kids to find out the news while channel-surfing. The show airs June 18.
But one parent, Lynn Sorbel, who acknowledges that kids and parents like French, believes that the letter was "a smoke screen for gay activism, and there's no room in elementary school for gay activism."
Tammie Epley, whose son was in the class where the letter was read aloud sees it differently.
"I asked my boys, 'Did you like Mr. French yesterday?'" she said. "'Well, he's the same person today. You shouldn't like him any less.'" |
