Co-creator of Christian TV series ‘Veggie Tales’ says he will resist including LGBT themes on his show
Phil Vischer co-created the Christian TV series 'Veggie Tales'
By Steve Brown
Words: Steve Brown
The co-creator of a Christian-orientated children’s TV series says he will resist being ‘forced’ to show same-sex relationships on his show.
Phil Vischer co-created the Christian TV series Veggie Tales, an animated show that teaches children on the religion and Biblical stories.
However, following the same-sex marriage in Arthur, Vischer says he doesn’t believe that showing children same-sex relationships in the best for them.
He told The Christian Post: “Parents are definitely going to have to deal with a growing LGBT presence in children’s media.
“It’s going to show up more and more as the world has decided that LGBT issues are in the same categories as race and civil rights issues.
“So, to say you shouldn’t have a same-sex couple on Sesame Street is the equivalent of saying you shouldn’t have a black couple on Sesame Street.
“If I get pressure from Hollywood to show two men getting married because we’ve all decided it’s right and correct, my pushback is: ‘No, I won’t. Because that’s not what I believe is best for kids’.
“It’s more about what we show as normal rather than explicitly showing something and saying, ‘That’s wrong.’ I’m portraying the positive rather than the negative.”
Although he says he would argue against including LGBTQ relationships on his show, he understands that they will have to be addressed ‘at some point’ but only in a matter of time.
He continued: “I think it will have to be addressed at some point; I do think it’s a matter of time.
“But right now, I think it would be difficult for a couple of reasons. First: the nuance of how to treat LGBT issues isn’t agreed upon within the church; and secondly, some parents may want to have that talk with their kids. It’s tricky because it’s so divisive.
“It would be hard to do it in a way that works and matches everyone’s expectations.
“It would be easy to do it poorly. It’s still so controversial; I’m not sure what I would add that would be helpful enough in the conversation that it’s worth the number of people I could offend.”